In 2009, J. J. Abrams relaunched the Star Trek film series with a cheerful movie that heavily honored the original series while reinventing it at the same time. While it was action-packed and marked with some tragedy, that movie was largely light-hearted as the members of the famous crew got to know each other and became comfortable with one another.

For its sequel, Into Darkness, Abrams drew on the Khan mythos central to the iconic second movie to create a much more somber film experience that still includes plenty of fun moments of camaraderie among Kirk, Spock, Bones and the rest of the Enterprise crew.

As before, the movie stars Chris Pine as hot-blooded captain James Kirk, Zachary Quinto as rational first officer Spock and Karl Urban as acerbic ship’s doctor Bones. They and others must square off against the menacing super-villain Khan, played by Benedict Cumberbatch. New shades of character interactions from the first reboot, particularly the romantic relationship between Spock and Uhura (Zoe Saldana), come into play as the crew races against time to defeat this formidable foe.

As in the first movie, the characterizations are excellent, as are the special effects. On the big screen, it truly feels like a journey into outer space, and even though these aren’t the actors that so many Trekkies grew up with, they embody the characters beautifully, so it feels like a voyage with friends. There is a certain level of convoluted structuring in place due to the alternate universe scaffolding Abrams built in the first movie, and that can get confusing for viewers who think about it too much. However, for the most part, the movie is reasonably easy to follow.

What may be a bigger disappointment to some fans is that the film truly does fit the title and thus has a much darker feel to it than its predecessor. Those looking for a frothy summer romp may be a bit disturbed at some of the unpleasantness that develops, while more cerebral viewers may consider it a step up into more serious territory. Either way, it seems the new Star Trek is here to stay.

Tune-in to the 2013 Billboard Music Awards this Sunday at 8pm ET on ABC, available through Comcast Cable!

This Sunday’s Billboard Music Awards will feature plenty of music’s top stars, including Prince, Madonna, Taylor Swift, Justin Bieber and many others, making it an entertaining and exciting awards show you won’t want to miss.

The very funny Tracy Morgan, of SNL and 30 Rock fame, is hosting and he is sure to have the audience howling in laughter. The show’s many performers include Prince, who’ll receive the Billboard’s Icon Award, Taylor Swift, Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj, Bruno Mars, Miguel, Justin Bieber, Pitbull, Christina Aguilera, Selena Gomez, The Band Perry, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, Chris Brown, Ed Sheeran, Akon, Ne-Yo, David Guetta and Icona Pop.

There are numerous awards including the Top Touring Artist award, which Madonna has earned through the success of her MDNA tour. Also, there is the Milestone Award, which is fan-driven. One lucky voter will present the award with Cee Lo Green. The three contenders for this special award are Bieber, Swift, and Mars. This will be exciting to witness. Each of the nominees is very popular, but Taylor Swift seems like a good bet because of her positive interactions with fans. However, it’s anyone’s guess.

The finalists for Top Artist are Justin Bieber, Maroon 5, One Direction, Rihanna and Taylor Swift. One Direction seems like a safe bet because they’ve had such a big year.

The Top Hot 100 Song finalists are Fun for “Some Nights,” Gotye featuring Kimbra for “Somebody That I Used To Know,” Carly Rae Jepsen for “Call Me Maybe,” and Maroon 5 for “One More Night” and “Payphone” featuring Wiz Khalifa. Considering Maroon 5 are nominated twice, they have the best odds.

For Top Billboard 200 Album, the nominees are Adele for “21,” Mumford & Sons for “Babel,” One Direction for “Take Me Home” and “Up All Night” and Taylor Swift for “Red.” One Direction is nominated for two albums, so the odds are in their favor.

The Top Duo/Group finalists are Coldplay, Fun, Maroon 5, Mumford & Sons, and One Direction. Mumford & Sons or Coldplay probably have this one because they’ve each had strong years.

The nominees for Top New Artist are Gotye, Carly Rae Jepsen, The Lumineers, One Direction and PSY. One Direction seems like a clear cut winner in this category because of their popularity and productivity this year.

The season 12 winner of American Idol will be revealed tonight at 8 PM on FOX, available through Comcast Cable!

Ever since the season premiere in January, faithful viewers of American Idol have been on the lookout for the country’s next mega artist. The search came down to six performances last night, three apiece from the final two contestants of Season Twelve, Kree Harrison of Texas and Candice Glover of South Carolina. This is the first two girl finale since Fantasia Barrino and Diana DeGarmo battled for the title in Season Three. Both contestants gave it their all in three rounds of performances to over 7,000 in person fans at the Nokia Theatre at LA Live and millions more watching on FOX.

The first strategic move of the night was made before the first note was sung. Having become a tradition of the American Idol finale, after the Final Two are announced, they gather around host Ryan Seacrest for the toss of a special commemorative coin with the face of one of the final contestants on either side. Ryan tosses the coin, and whichever contestant’s face it lands on gets to choose if they will perform first or second on finale night. Kree Harrison won the toss and chose to go first, a historical death slot. In seven of Idol‘s eleven previous seasons, the eventual winner has performed second. The final performance of the night is historically the best, stays with the viewers’ memories, and thus often seals the winner, so it is interesting that Kree chose to perform first.

The theme of Round One was songs chosen for the contestants by the creator of American Idol, Simon Fuller. He chose for Kree Harrison Sarah McLachlan’s “Angel” and for Candice Glover Adele’s “Chasing Pavements.” Kree’s performance stirred emotion while Candice’s brought down the house. The latter result is typically desirable for the Idol finale, and outgoing twelve-season judge Randy Jackson gave Round One to Candice after making the bold comment that both choices of his boss were boring.

Round Two was the performance of the potential winner’s singles. Kree performed an emotional ballad called “All Cried Out” to a standing ovation by everyone save Nicki Minaj. Candice had an uplifting number called “I Am Beautiful,” fitting for her self-esteem struggles throughout the season.

The third round was songs the contestants had performed previously in the season. Kree chose “Up to the Mountain” and received a standing ovation. Keith Urban called it beautiful, and the rest of the panel agreed. Candice went with the classic “I (Who Have Nothing)” and again brought down the house. Randy Jackson, in his final Idol critique, said that the competition was about singing and that Candice had it all.

Candice was said to have a slight edge going in, and she probably held on to it last night. It was arguably the closest finale in Idol history, and the win could fall either way. However, DialIdol, the telephone software that has correctly predicted every winner since Season Four, gives Candice the hearty victory. Viewers will find out tonight on the Season Twelve finale!

Bates Motel airs Mondays at 10pm ET on A&E, available through Comcast Cable!

“Underwater”

At the end of the previous episode, Norma discovered Shelby’s corpse in her bed. She suspects that Jake Abernethy was somehow responsible, but is of course unable to prove anything.

The next day, Norma is upset when she discovers the other motel guests blithely smoking pot outside of their rooms. Dylan is evasive about the job he’s brought them in for, and it seems to finally dawn on Norma that the town is heavily involved in marijuana production. She angrily storms off and announces that they are moving as soon as possible.

Emma begins work organizing the motel’s office files, but Norma tells her to simply trash most of the paperwork left by Keith Summers. On her way out, Norma receives a flower delivery with a note that simply says “See you soon…” Norma assumes Jake sent the flowers and calls it in to the sheriff’s office.

At school, Ms Watson suggests to Norman that he should try to publish his latest short story. She offers to help Norman edit the story and seems creepily drawn to both he and his writing, referring to him as an “old soul.”

Meanwhile, Bradley approaches Dylan in town and asks him to help her retrieve some of her father’s things from his old office. Later, Dylan asks Gill about the office; Gill assumes Dylan wants the office for himself and tells him just to throw all the old stuff away.

Bradley, however, seems pretty insistent on getting into the office, and Dylan cannot resist her puppy dog eyes. They sneak in after hours and are stopped by Remo. He admonishes Dylan for bringing her there, but lets them into the office anyway. Bradley looks for her father’s pocket watch, but instead finds evidence that he was having an affair with someone with the initial “B.”

Sheriff Romero arrives at the motel and tells Norma that Jake Abernethy is an alias. Unfortunately without any physical evidence, they are unable to uncover his real identity or his connection to Shelby and Summers. Norma is understandably frustrated and Romero offers to patrol the area regularly in case Jake returns.

Norma begins taking steps to move her family elsewhere, including putting the motel property back on the market. She proposes moving to Hawaii to start over, but Norman insists on staying. He snaps and calls Norma crazy before quickly apologizing for the outburst.

Emma interrupts their argument when she stumbles into the living room and explains that she felt like she was being watched while sitting in the motel office. After a few moments, Norma realizes that Emma is high, courtesy of a pot-cupcake one of the guests had left out for her.

After they send Emma home, Norma asks if she can sleep in Norman’s room. Norman offers to sleep on the floor, but Norma insists on just cozying up in his tiny twin bed. They each apologize for the earlier argument and go to sleep.

The next evening, Norma’s realtor tells her there is no market for her property because he has to disclose the news of the highway bypass. When she threatens to sue him for not telling her about the bypass in the first place, he tells her he doesn’t have any assets so it won’t matter. She angrily hits him with her purse and storms out.

When she gets into her car, Jake pops up from the backseat and holds her at gunpoint. He tells her that Shelby owed him money and that it’s up to her to pay him back. He threatens to kill her sons first if she doesn’t comply, and tells her to meet him at midnight the following night.

Tune in next week for the season finale and see how Norma handles this threat to her family.

The second round of the NBA Playoffs and the first round of the NHL Playoffs are entering their prime phases, and some extremely entertaining games unfolded over the last week. Tens of millions of sports fans all over the nation witnessed huge ups and downs. Here’s a quick reflection, as well as a look at some important games scheduled for the next few days.

Very few basketball fans expected the Golden State Warriors to compete with the San Antonio Spurs in this series, but after the first two games in Texas, the entire basketball world was looking at the matchup with a special interest. The Warriors played a fast-paced and accurate breed of basketball, but the Spurs returned volley in Game 3 in Oakland and took advantage of the series. The Warriors were able to squeak out a victory Game 4 after the referees conveniently ignored an incorrect out of bounds call in the final seconds, but the Spurs completely dominated Golden State in Game 5 on Tuesday evening, taking a firm grip on the series.

The majority of basketball fans who are undecided in this particular matchup have now likely jumped on the Spurs’ bandwagon, and the #6-ranked warriors now obviously have to win two in a row to advance to the Western Conference Finals. The entire tournament seems to be a competition to see who gets dominated by the Miami Heat, who have been embarrassing the Chicago Bulls in the past few days.

The Bulls were lucky enough to win Game 1 in Miami, but it only served as a motivating factor for the reigning kings to destroy the threat to their throne. They Heat have since achieved 37, 10, and 23 point victories, and they will soon advance to face the winner of the Indiana Pacers/New York Knicks series. The Oklahoma City Thunder were the cream of the Western Conference heading into the playoffs, but an injury to point guard Russell Westbrook has changed everything. Kevin Durant is extremely talented, but even he cannot carry a team on his back all the way to the NBA Finals.

In other sports news, Tiger Woods continued to reestablish his classic form by besting the field by two strokes at The Players Championship in Florida. The victory will give him some serious momentum heading into the US Open, professional golf’s next major championship on the calendar.

Tune-in tonight to American Idol at 8pm ET on FOX, available through Comcast Cable!

Last week’s American Idol was jammed packed with excitement. The final top three women gave it their all and in the end America had to say good-bye to Angie Miller. Angie and her fans seemed shocked by the elimination, but it was apparent for quite a while that Candice and Kree would be the ones in the final.

On a side note, it was nice to not to have to sit through another Nicki Minaj and Mariah Carey fight, but their fragile truce may have come too late. The ratings are suffering, and it appears to be largely due to the fights between these two divas. Plus, Randy Jackson has announced that he is leaving the show next season. On top of that news, it is being said that neither of the judges will be asked to return for season 13. Idol does need overhauling if it is to compete with other top-rated singing shows.

On tonight’s show, the finalists are rumored to be singing three songs each. Jimmy Iovine will choose a song, Simon Fuller will select a Coronation single and the women will sing a Reprisal song which is being billed as “Favorite Performances.”

The song list for Candice Glover is said to be “Chasing Pavements” by Adele, “I (Who Have Nothing)” by Ben E. King and “I Am Beautiful.” Kree is set to perform “All Cried Out,” “Angel” by Sarah McLachlan and “Up To The Mountain (M.K.K. Song)” by Patty Griffin and Solomon Burke.

For Candice Glover to come out on top, she will have to rely on her strong and powerful voice to wow the voters, but since Candice is primarily a jazz singer and it is hard to say if America will give her the votes she will need to win.

Kree Harrison is authentic and has a strong voice as was well, but she has to keep up her energy and perform like she has never done before if she wants to truly compete with Candice.

Both of these women have the talent and ability to come out the winner and whoever wins or loses is almost certain to have a future in music.

Tune in to FOX at 8 PM tonight to see these two talented women give the performances of their lives in the finale.

Mad Men airs Sundays at 9pm ET on AMC, available through Comcast Cable!

Season 6, Episode 7: “Man with a Plan”

As the episode opens, Don Draper is taking the elevator in his apartment building down to the lobby when he overhears the Rosens fighting and his mistress, Sylvia, telling her husband, Arnie, to get out. At the former Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce office (now merged with Cutler Gleason and Chaough), everything is in chaos as the new employees are moving in. Despite many challenges to her authority, Joan Harris firmly maintains her place in the hierarchy but takes some time to welcome Peggy Olson more warmly.

Pete Campbell arrives late to the partners’ meeting at the office to discover that there isn’t a seat in the room for him, which causes some tension until Ted Chaough gives up his seat for his secretary, who in turn gives her seat to Pete. As the partners review their accounts, they mention that they have a meeting next week with Fleischmann’s margarine and that they have to deal with a number of new conflicts of interest from the merger. Several redundant positions also have to be eliminated, and Roger Sterling in particular takes great pleasure in firing Burt Peterson, who now works for CGC but who was fired as head of accounts by SCDP at the beginning of Season 3. Pete is called out of the partner’s meeting for an urgent phone call and it turns out that his senile mother showed up to his apartment, sure that she was tracking down Pete’s (dead) father having an affair.

Sylvia calls Don at work and asks him to come over; he says he can’t get away till 12:30 and asks her to meet him at a hotel. Seeing Sylvia causes Don to miss the first meeting of the new merged creative team, so Ted leads them in a brainstorming session about margarine. The SCDP team seems a little put off by Ted’s strategies.

At the hotel, Don starts to act very controlling toward Sylvia, telling her not to talk about her husband and to crawl on her hands and knees to find his shoes. She refuses but does follow his order to get undressed and back into bed; he tells her not to go anywhere as he leaves. When Don returns to the office, Ted calls him out for being 40 minutes late to the meeting. Don calls Sylvia and tells her to wait without knowing when he’s coming back and not to answer the phone again. He calls once more just to test her. Ted and Don then brainstorm about the margarine commercial. Don gets  Ted drunk and then visualizes the whole commercial while Ted only makes minor changes. Ted staggers into the creative department’s meeting room and passes out on the table.

Don has a red dress from Saks Fifth Avenue delivered to Sylvia’s hotel room. When he arrives at the room hours later, she is dressed and thinks they’re going out. He tells her that they’re not going anywhere, she exists in that room for his pleasure, and that she should take off her clothes for him; she complies. Later, he leaves again to fly upstate to meet with a client. He again tells her to wait and takes her book so that she has no source of entertainment or distraction.

Ted visits his sick former partner in the hospital for a heart to heart. Ted says he can’t figure out if Don is putting on his mysterious ways, and his friend counsels him on how to regain some of his stature in the office. Peggy meets with Don to scold him for showing up Ted. Ted is a pilot, so he flies Don upstate for the meeting through a storm, which clearly unnerves Don and helps Ted feel more dominant. Pete had to miss the trip because his brother refused to take their mother to her home or to his and tells Pete to take her to Trudy; he is later called out of a meeting with Harry because his mother started a small fire in his apartment. His mother seems to drift in and out of lucidity and he won’t tell her that he and Trudy have split.

Joan, meanwhile, is feeling quite sick, with pain in her left side and violent vomiting. Bob Benson, the aspiring and brownnosing accounts guy, takes her to the hospital and gets her bumped up in line at the emergency room. (It turns out that she had an ovarian cyst.) Bob stops by Joan’s apartment the next day with a football as a gift for her son and to check on Joan. Joan’s mother thinks that he is romantically interested in her and encourages her to pursue him. Joan says it’s all about concern for his job and dismisses her mother’s ideas but smiles at the football when no one is around. In a meeting about redundancies, some partners want to fire Bob to even out the loss of Burt, but Joan convinces them to let someone else go.

When Don returns to the hotel, Sylvia is leaving the room and tells Don that their affair is over. She had a dream that convinced her to recommit to her husband. They leave the red dress on the bed. Back at home, Megan Draper suggests taking time off to go on vacation, but Don tunes her out.

At the end of the episode, Pete’s mother wakes him to tell him about Bobby Kennedy’s shooting, but she is clearly confused at points so he dismisses her. We see Megan watching the TV coverage of the assassination in her room, but Don sits facing away from the screen and away from Megan.

Catch all of this week’s must-see TV shows on Comcast Cable!

This week is season finale week for the networks, which means it’s time to crank up that DVR. Among the week’s sweetest treats are the following:

American Idol
The twelfth season of American Idol closes with a two-part finale, airing on Fox May 13 from 8-9p.m. ET, and May 14 from 8-10p.m. Viewers will find out which young woman takes home the title: Nashville’s Kree Harrison or South Carolinian Candice Glover. The show also bids farewell to judge Randy Jackson, who has been with the American version of Idol since it debuted in 2002.

This season, Idol received some of its lowest ratings ever. Nevertheless, the final episodes of the year should be worth watching for performances from Frankie Valli, The Band Perry and Jennifer Lopez.

Saturday Night Live
Movie star and director Ben Affleck hosts the season finale of Saturday Night Live. It airs on NBC May 18 from 11:30p.m. 1:00a.m. ET. This installment marks Affleck’s fifth time hosting the show, which means the episode should include a skit in which Affleck is inducted into the fabled SNL Five-Timers Club. This tradition began when Tom Hanks hosted for the fifth time in 1990; a list of other Five-Timers includes Steve Martin, Alec Baldwin, Candice Bergen and, as of 2013, Justin Timberlake. Incidentally, rapper Kanye West will be the SNL musical guest on May 18, and this is his fifth appearance on the show as well.

The Simpsons
Two episodes of The Simpsons air Sunday, May 19 on Fox, but the unmissable episode is on from 8:30-9p.m. This season finale features Family Guy creator Seth MacFarlane as Ben, a married man with whom Marge unwittingly initiates a relationship while surfing the Internet. The episode will also reveal the winner of the “Couch Gag” contest. Creators of The Simpsons asked fans to submit ideas for a couch gag, the visual joke that ends the opening credits each week. Viewers voted online for their favorite idea.

MacFarlane’s participation here represents a further thawing in the relationship between The Simpsons and Family Guy. In the past, the producers and writers of these Fox shows have occasionally sniped at each another via jokes delivered on their respective programs. But now a respect seems to be growing between the two camps. In 2012, Dan Castellaneta from The Simpsons even did a cameo as Homer Simpson on Family Guy.

The Great Gatsby, offers a look into the glitz and glamour of the roaring ’20s. The movie is set in the age of a booming economy, the birth jazz music and the controversial flapper culture. It gives viewers a look into the drawbacks of affluence and wealth in a society that heavily emphasizes appearances and social politics, also impacted by bootlegging and prohibition and various criminal activities.

Based on the novel by F. Scott Fitzgerald, the movie stars well-known actors such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Tobey Maguire, Carey Mulligan, Isla Fisher and more. The story follows the story of Nick Carraway, who is an up and coming broker living in 1920s Long Island. While in New York, Nick gets back in touch with his cousin Daisy Buchanan and her husband Tom. He also hears about his neighbor, the mysterious Jay Gatsby who is well known in the neighborhood for hosting elaborate parties and galas that last well into the night.

The film is co-directed by Baz Lurhman, who has previously worked with Leonardo DiCaprio on the movie Romeo and Juliet. Baz Lurhman’s style is well known for stunning visuals as well as incorporating vibrant musical numbers, making this an ideal match for a movie about the Art Deco lifestyle and glamorous indulgences of 1920s New York. Individuals who have read the book during american literature courses while in high school or college will want to take a look at this new and updated version. While the story line is set nearly 100 years ago in the 1920s, the themes and issues that the characters face are still seen in modern culture. The film is rated PG-13 for minor adult situations, and will be shown in both 3D and traditional formats. The movie currently holds a critics rating of 3 out of 5 stars.

Bates Motel airs Mondays at 10pm ET on A&E, available through Comcast Cable!

“A Boy and his Dog”

In the previous episode, Norman found a dog living under the porch. She runs away, but returns several times and Norman tries to bond with her. At the end of the episode she is accidentally struck and killed by a car, and Norman is inconsolable.

At the beginning of “A Boy and his Dog,” Norman visits Emma’s father, Will, who is an amateur taxidermist. Norman asks Will to preserve the dog because even though he didn’t know her very well, he believes it would be too sad to “put her in the ground.”

At school, Emma is in the bathroom at school and overhears other girls talking about how Norman would never have a chance with Bradley. Trying to stick up for Norman, Emma confronts the girls and tells them that he and Bradley slept together.

Later, Bradley approaches Norman and insists that they need to ignore the rumor (even though it is true), since she already has a boyfriend. Norman is upset leaves school, but is stopped by Miss Watson. When she tries to take his arm, Norman angrily pushes her aside and storms off.

At the hotel, Norma stops by Jake’s room to clean. He asks about Shelby’s death and acts surprised to learn that Shelby and Summers had been involved in sex trafficking. Norma feels threatened and leaves as quickly as possible.

She then heads to Sheriff Romero’s office and asks if there is any way she might be able to stop the proposed highway bypass that would effectively kill the hotel’s business. Romero is resistant to help her and when Norma tries to intimidate him, he threatens to “burn her to the ground.”

Norma is then called in to school and told that Norman will be suspended for leaving in the middle of the day. Principal Hodgins and Miss Watson believe Norman may be emotionally unstable and refer him to a psychologist.

Norman apologizes to his mother for the trouble at school and asks her to drive him down to Will’s shop so he can help with the taxidermy project. Norma privately expresses concern about Norman’s interest in taxidermy, but Will believes the hobby will be good for him.

Norma arrives home as Jake is leaving, and impulsively decides to follow him (in the most obvious manner possible) to the marina. He briefly searches Summers’ boat and Norma loses sight of him. As she tries to get back to her car, Jake pulls up suddenly and asks where she’s hidden “it,” perhaps referring to the notebook Norman found during the renovations.

The next day, Norma takes Norman to see a therapist. She sits in on the session and largely speaks for Norman when asked about his father’s death. The therapist pulls her aside and asks to see both she and Norman separately, as he worries that Norma’s need for control over Norman reflects a sense of powerlessness in her own life.

When she arrives back at the hotel, Norma tries to reassert control and demands that Jake leave immediately or else she’ll call the police. Much to her relief, he packs his things and drives off.

Meanwhile, Dylan and his new partner, Remo, head down to California to pick up “trimmers” to harvest the marijuana fields. On the way, they get into a fight after Remo complains that Dylan is too young and inexperienced to be in charge. But Dylan later gains his respect when he tosses one of the workers (an overwrought caricature of a hippie, complete with a fringed jacket and acoustic guitar) out of the van for complaining and riling up the others.

Norma is cleaning Jake’s hotel room when Dylan returns with the trimmers. She thanks him for bringing in some business (apparently oblivious to the nature of their work) and asks him to have dinner in the village. When Norma heads upstairs to change, she finds Shelby’s corpse on her bed.

Tune in next week for the aftermath of this grisly discovery.