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Touch (S2E5) “Perfect Storm” Recap

28 02 2013

The danger to Jake draws closer as does finding Amelia. Jake has a girlfriend! There are lots of Easter eggs in this episode with the color red, the reference to stars. Even Citrus O makes an appearance. Avram’s back! The number tonight is 5991.

Lucy (Maria Bello) wakes Martin (Kiefer Sutherland) up to show him a timeline board she created as part of her hypothesis of where Amelia (Saxon Sharbino) is.

Jake (David Mazouz) narrates: “Sometimes storms do not arrive full-blown. Sometimes they build up for days or even weeks. An arctic storm moving southward can suddenly crash into a tropical hurricane that’s driving north. And when this collision of weather systems occur, it causes the storm to explode, a subtotal of their destructive energy is far greater what any of them would have been had they remained on their own, creating what meteorologists call “perfect conditions” for a deadly storm. A perfect storm.”

Guillermo (Said Taghmaoui) is in New York. A young man (Joe Abraham) [who looks like Josh Groban’s shorter cousin] delivers dry cleaning to Paul at Martin’s old building.

Guillermo has caught up to Jake pretty quickly, but the door person (John Barbolla) tells him there is no forwarding address.

Jake brings a red umbrella with him on his first full day of school. Jake’s phone rings. It’s Avram! (Bodhi Elfman) [I adore his character]. Jake called him 3 times the night previous so he assumed it was Jake. Avram tells Jake a joke and Jake laughs for the first time. Martin and Avram do the cliff-notes catch-up. Guillermo is now tailing Avram. [And I’m terrified he will be the next casualty].

Avram tells Jake a joke

Martin meets with Calvin (Lukas Haas) and obtains Mallory Cane’s red-level pass card. He tells him to avoid the offices where his partner, Tony (Adam Campbell), occupies.

Kase (John Boyd) tries to buy a spring-loaded pinball machine from Hiroshima (Toshi Toda), but gets one that is electronic. Shigeru Fukura (Shawn Huang) won’t let him down.

Guillermo breaks into Avram’s apartment looking for clues to Jake’s whereabouts. [There is a star on the package on the desk.] Guillermo hides in the closet when Avram returns.

The packaging has a star (on the desk).

[Easter egg alert: with 2 bottles of Citrus O].

Blurry, but it’s hard to screen cap a moving bottle of Citrus O

Avram plans to meet with someone at the Beth Ahavah synagogue. Avram notices the chair is not in the place he left it. Guillermo breaks out his knife, but Avram leaves before he has to use it. [That was scary].

There are scarier things than spiders in your closet.

Jake smiles when he sees that Soleil (Isabella Acres) gets rabbit hutch clean-up duties with him [words on a red background]. I think Jake has a crush. His bunny, Fluffy, goes missing but Jake finds him [lots of kids with red in the crowd.]

Soleil tells them not to touch Jake, but Jake seems okay with it now. What a kid will do for love!

Jake is letting others touch him. Wonder if they have to change the name of the show now.

Martin goes to room 1075 at Aster Corps but the computer servers are gone. Martin changes the game plan and goes directly to Tony’s office. [There are red things on a table near the desk.] Martin tells a version of the truth, and says he thinks Calvin is insane and as a reporter he is obligated to tell the truth. Tony asks how much money Martin would want to do this story. Martin writes down a number which Tony says is doable. If he can open the encrypted files, Martin and Tony have a deal.

Red, red everywhere

Lucy heads over to Trevor (Greg Ellis) at BreakWire. After narrowing the results to unsolved murders who were geniuses or savants, they get 18 matches. She asks Trevor to put the picture she has through facial recognition software.

Kase waits for the new machine to arrive [while under red umbrellas. The machine casing is also red.]

Red pops everywhere

Avram leaves Temple. Guillermo tries the direct approach and asks for information on Jake. Avram won’t help him. Guillermo gives him his room number at the hotel, 5991. [Danger Will Robinson!] When asked by his companions who that was, Avram says he is enemy of the 36. He calls Jake immediately.

Enemy and protector of the 36 Righteous Ones meet

Martin opens the file with the number and tony tells him to download all Calvin’s files to Calvin’s laptop. Martin is left alone for a short time and he also finds files in Adeline Danvers. Her DOB is 4/11/1998. He finds a brain scan image. The files are dated after Aster Corps lost her. Martin makes the connection that Calvin has Amelia. The timeline fits as well. Tony puts a GPS tracking device on the laptop.

Amelia’s brain imaging

Amelia tells Frances (Linda Gehringer) what the numbers mean, “The numbers define the recurrence relation of interconnecting parallel and distributing systems — systems that strive for beauty and completeness, that permeate all structures, forms and proportions, whether cosmic or individual, organic or inorganic, acoustic, or optical. The magnetic resonance in spins of cobalt niobate crystals proves their existence at the atomic scale. But I believe the proportions are evident in the human genome DNA. These systems appear in recognizable biological settings, too, like the branching in trees, phyllotaxis, and the fruit sprouts of pineapple.”

Amelia is hooked up to the machine and Kase injects her with radioactive contrast. [Frances is officially evil. She knows what they are doing to Amelia. She, however, makes sure that this experiment won’t frighten her.] The pachinko machine is completely random (that is, no skill required). They are using it to gauge Amelia’s ability to predict the future. The setup will convert Amelia’s responses into binary code. Amelia is teaching a supercomputer [why is War Games now popping into my mind?).

Amelia teaches a supercomputer.

The laundry guy’s brother got Avram access to Guillermo’s room. He says that they are aware of his mission and are happy to do it. Guillermo leaves the hotel and walks past the red doorman at The Middleton Hotel.

Avram gasps when he sees Jake in Guillermo’s portfolio. Guillermo returns. [When he locks the hotel room door, I fear Avram is about to be killed.] Guillermo is from the Jesuit order [great, another priest scandal, LOL] He says he is on a mission of mercy, to rid the world of the 36 so the natural order of God can be restored. Guillermo puts a knife up to Avram’s throat, but he says that if he deviates from killing the 36, which he is. It, then he is just a Godless murderer. Avram leaves.

Mission from God or Godless murderer?

Martin shows Lucy Calvin’s computer (and Amelia’s brain imaging). Lucy wants to go to the police, but Martin reminds her they cannot do that. Lucy storms off to the police department anyway. The police think she is a delusional, grieving mother.

Trevor & Lucy — but notice the red star on the left.

Lucy at police station; notice red sticky note in the background.

Kase shows Calvin Jake’s file. His scores are higher than Amelia. Imagine if we had two of them? The progress would leap forward. Calvin recognizes Martin. When they meet later, Calvin threatens Martin.

Martin picks Jake up and Soleil tells Martin they’ve been “dating” for 4 hours now. Avram is calling to warn them about Guillermo. He thanks Jake for the warning. When Jake and Martin arrive home, they use the red umbrella because it finally rains.

Young, in love, and now dating for 4 hours. She likes the strong silent type.

The lies begin between Martin and Lucy. He does not tell her about Jake; she does not tell him that she went to the police. He does share about Avram said. Martin tells Lucy that Calvin did not show.

Let the lies begin!

“And when these perfect storms hit you have to recognize them for what they are, acknowledge their awesome power, and hold on tight.”

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Tags: 36 righteous ones, Adam Campbell, Adeline Danvers, Aidan Andrews, Amelia, Amelia Sequence, Anna Diop, Aramazd Stephanian, aster, Aster Corps, Avram, Bodhi Elfman, California, Calvin Norbug, Carol Barbee, Cathy Mickel Gibson, chess, Chinese legend, Citrus O, connected, conspiracy, David Eick, David Lewis, David Mazouz, Dennis Hammer, episode 5, Fibonacci Project, Fox Broadcasting, Fox VIP, good vs evil, Greg Ellis, Guillermo Ortiz, hidden clues, Hilda Bowen, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, Isabella Acres, Jake Bohm, jake does not have autism, Joe Abraham, John Barbolla, John Boyd, Jonny Lee, Josh Groban's shorter cousin, kabbalah, Kase, Katherine Pope, Kellie JoTackett, Kiefer Sutherland, Lamed Vav Tzadikim, Linda Gehringer, Lisa, Lori Motyer, Lucy Robbins, Lukas Haas, Mackenzie Astin, Madison Leisle, Mallory Cane, Marcus LaVoi, Maria Bello, Martin Bohm, metaphysical, Michael Amador, mind of God, mutism, mythos, Nazim Farzat, New Girl, Nicole Burke, PBMom, Peter Chernin, Rajni Kareer, red, red thread of fate, Said Taghmaoui, Sanford Bookstaver, Saxon Sharbino, Shawn Huang, Soleil, Soleil Friedman, stars, Talmud, The Fibonacci Project, Tim Kring, Toshi Toda, Touch, Tree of Life, Trevor Wilcox
Categories : Fox Shows, Touch, TV shows

TOUCH (S2E4) Enemy of My Enemy Recap

23 02 2013

“For the purpose of travels, both inward and outward, is not merely to see the unseen but to bring those wishes home, to share with those we love.” The magic number tonight is 1075! Stars and the color red are embedded heavily throughout the episode. Some of my commentary is embedded in bold italics within the recap.

Lucy (Maria Bello) gets boxes from her husband sent to PO Box 457, tracking number 1Z14785, NJ–1075–CA. [I tried the QR code but it was not valid (sad face). What would have been infinitely MORE interesting would have been for it to lead to fox.com/touch or something else really cool like hidden bonus features for the episode.]

Lucy encourages Martin (Kiefer Sutherland) to send Jake (David Mazouz) to school where Soleil Friedman (Isabella Acres) goes. Jake pulls out a picture of a birthday party with Lucy and Amelia (Saxon Sharbino). Guillermo (Said Taghmaoui) is lurking in the background, but they don’t know who this man really is yet.

Martin gets a text to meet at Lebanon Street off 6th, at 10 a.m. with presumably Calvin. Martin meets with Trevor (Greg Ellis). He wants Calvin (Lukas Haas) to think he is a reporter. Martin needs a cover backstory and Trevor needs a reporter of Martin’s caliber. Martin accepts.

At the border of Pakistan and Afghanistan, it is 64.9 km to Peer Kalay, 207 to Kabul and 568 to Kandahar. Mallory Cane (Audrey Marie Anderson) tells her husband (Mackenzie Astin) on the phone that she thinks her hotel room phone has been tapped. The border guards take her into custody as her husband listens. The green flag is shown [it has a star on it]. The guard has a red circle that looks like the pattern Jake sees also like the QR code on Lucy’s package.

The color red is back! Jake has a red and gray striped shirt. Lucy’s tablet is red. Jake is drawing a pattern on a napkin of an oval with a circle in the middle, actually looks like a spaceship. There is a woman walking in the background with a red dress. [I know the picture I’m clipping looks like the umbrellas are orange, but I think that is just the quality of my picture; it was red when it aired.]

Jake hands it to a woman sitting near them (Patricia Rae). It makes the woman upset and she tries to give it back to Jake. Lucy asks her if she knows Amelia. The woman does not respond to the question and Jake hands her purse to her, not before lifting an envelope from it. It is addressed to Seaman Vicente Corliss, Bldg 1075 Port Hueneme Naval Base, Port Hueneme, CA. When Lucy sees the number matches her box, she opens it. It contains cash and a picture of a man who looks like Guillermo. The letter says, “You must find him. I no longer can.” The note looks like a suicide letter from someone to Vicente. Lucy is boiling water in a red kettle to open the envelope with the steam.

A limo pulls up for Martin and he gets in.

Jake narrates: “From the smallest amoeba to the grandest of galaxies, we define ourselves by our borders. I am me; therefore I am not you. We are safe within our territory, but borders can be places of instability, of danger. Cold fronts collide with warm; dynamic energy explodes. Yet it’s at the edges, the frontiers between us, where ideas are exchanged, where knowledge is gained. I am me but I must push past my borders if I am ever truly to know you.”

The woman looks for something on a map. Amelia draws tides in the Arabian Sea and labels Pakistan. There are red numbers on the map. She has a box decorated with butterflies [a few of them red].

Martin meets Calvin who is firing a gun at a range. He remembers Martin from the elevator. Martin says he believes Aster Corps is involved with criminal activity such as murder and kidnapping. Calvin says that the average person is lied to up to 200 times per day. Despite hating guns, Martin has some pretty awesome aim. Calvin approves.

Mallory is wearing a red scarf as she is escorted to prison. The guard thinks she is a spy but she tells him she is in sales.

The book at Amelia’s house is “To Kill A Mockingbird”. Frances (Linda Gehringer) says, “Today won’t be a workday; it’s a chance to get to know each other.” Amelia is speed reading.

Back in the limo, Calvin directs Martin to building “J” , top floor, room 1075. He will need a red-level pass card. Mallory Cane has one. Calvin wants Martin to find her. He believes she can be persuaded to give him her card. Apparently Calvin wants his research back [or so he says].

At the naval base, Lucy and Jake meet with Vicente (Alex Ruiz). His aunt wrote the note. “So you’ve been out of touch?”. [Cute line]. The portrait is of the man who killed Vicente’s mother 4 years ago by slicing her throat. [Yep. That sounds like our Guillermo.] Aunt Sofia and his mom, Claudia Corliss, were identical twins. His mother was a savant astronomer with amazing insight who did not talk much either. [Star reference there.] She predicted the trajectory of the Corliss Comet. The picture that Jake drew was the path of the comet. He asks them to find his aunt. The Corliss Comet has a cycle of 122 years but it can be viewed that evening. Lucy theorizes that Sofia will wait to see that before she tries to kill herself.

Frances gets out a red board game called Tokeekol [not a real game name]. Amelia talks about the book, about “not understanding a person until you see their point of view.” It’s on page 177, 12 lines from the bottom. Amelia moves her piece then rolls the red dice (which match, number 9). The woman asks her if she knows what she’ll roll next. Amelia moves the woman’s piece 2 moves; the woman rolls snake eyes. Amelia sees herself winning the entire game.

Mallory meets with a man who threatens she’ll be sent to Bannu prison if she is not honest.

Martin goes to Mallory’s house. Her husband tries to choke him. She has been working on a program called T1 security program that Aster Corps sold to Pakistan. She found a flaw. Innocent people would be hurt. She threatened to go public when her supervisor did not act. Martin finds a file called the Fibonacci Project. He also finds a file for a bill to Stanford House on patient Adeline Danvers. And something called The Danvers Project. There is an expense memo for August 25-28 for meals, hotel and transport for a total of 800.27. He sees a dental bill for a “cavity fill with cap”. [I wonder if she has some kind of implant.] That was the cover name for Amelia. Martin thinks she is being hidden, that Aster Corps does not know where she is because the money trail ends 3 weeks prior.

At BreakWire, Jake is trying to call locally 1-323-78 to 1-310-64. The principal of Soleil’s school (Patricia Bethune) calls Martin. Jake made the connection between the two of them. School starts at 8:50 and Jake wants to go.

T1’s sole purpose was to profile terrorists. The web says too many innocent people are being snagged. Calvin helped design it. Aster Corps is using it to set her up. Calvin is going to jam the program to give them time for her to be released but he needs a connection in Pakistan and Martin can help there–a man in LA named Nazim Farzat (Sanjay Chandani). It is the man who picks up Lucy and Sofia on the highway to bring them back to Lucy’s car in a later scene.

Lucy goes to the Astraeus Society’s observatory. The comet viewing was cancelled because of cloud cover.

Jake is typing 1075 repetitively on the laptop. Amelia is writing the same number on her map. Lucy knocks Sofia out of the way at mile marker 1075. She says she should have been killed not her sister [which makes me immediately think she is Claudia and not Sofia since they were identical.]

[Nope I was wrong.] Sofia met Guillermo at her bar and invited him home. Guillermo became violent and tried to kill her. Sofia stuck him in the side of the neck with sewing scissors, but he killed Claudia and walked out the door with the scissors still stuck in his neck. Lucy explains that this guy thought Sofia was Claudia.

The guards throw Mallory out with her Aster Corps ID badge and bags.

When dropping Jake off, he goes into the lengthy detail about what Jake likes and does not. Soleil is very excited to see Jake.

“We cross borders; we explore new frontiers, frontiers of the heart, frontiers of the soul. And if we’re lucky, we go home again having learned great lessons of our shared destiny. For the purpose of travels, both inward and outward, is not merely to see the unseen but to bring those wishes home, to share with those we love.”

Mallory goes home.

Sofia reunites with Vicente.

Lucy asks Martin if he can trust Calvin. Calvin confirms Mallory is home. He uses an access code pad and thumb-print scanner [Really? No retinal scanner?] to get into the house where he has Amelia. The code is 500# [a star instead of a pound sign would have been really cool here]. Amelia’s caregiver is Calvin’s mother! So that is what she meant about having to “go underground” in the episode “Closer”. He asks Amelia if she is ready to do some work and says, “How’s my girl today?” [I am thoroughly creeped out by this.]

Back at the house, Lucy recognizes Guillermo in the picture from 3-1/2 years ago at a park in New Jersey. She shows Martin the scar. She wants to know why he’s standing behind her daughter 6 months after he killed someone just like Amelia. Which leads us to episode 4 of season 2.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

See my individual comments to scenes in brackets above. The color red returns. Why red? In Chinese culture, it signifies good fortune and joy. Stars take on more significance. “To Kill A Mockingbird” was the perfect choice for a book. The symbolism in the book of the mockingbird is someone who is innocent and kind but is persecuted. I did an English paper back in grade school on this topic. Clearly, the mockingbirds in TOUCH are the 36 Righteous Ones. It is still unclear if Calvin is a good guy or bad guy or somewhere in between. Why did Guillermo not kill Amelia? Was she still on the path of righteousness and he moved on to another person?

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Tags: "To Kill A Mockingbird", 1075, 122 years, 24, 36 righteous ones, 500, 5227, Adam Campbell, Adeline Danvers, Alex Ruiz, Alias, Amelia, Amelia Sequence, Amol Shah, aster, Aster Corps, Audrey Marie Anderson, Avram, California, Calvin Norbug, Carol Barbee, Cathy Mickel Gibson, chess, Chinese legend, Citrus O, Claudia Corliss, Closer, Coleman, connected, conspiracy, Corliss Comet, David Eick, David Mazouz, Dennis Hammer, episode 1, episode 4, Fibonacci Project, Fox Broadcasting, Fox VIP, Greg Ellis, Guillermo Ortiz, hidden clues, Hilda Bowen, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, Isabella Acres, Jack Guzman, Jake Bohm, jake does not have autism, Jason Gavin, kabbalah, Katherine Pope, Kellie JoTackett, Kiefer Sutherland, knight, Lamed Vav Tzadikim, Linda Gehringer, Lisa, Lori Motyer, Lucy Robbins, Lukas Haas, Mackenzie Astin, Madison Leisle, Mallory Cane, Marcus LaVoi, Maria Bello, Martin Bohm, metaphysical, Michael Amador, mind of God, mutism, mythos, Nazim Farzat, New Girl, Nicole Burke, Patricia Bethune, Patricia Rae, PBMom, Peter Chernin, Rajni Kareer, Ray Santiago, red, red thread of fate, Rizwan Manji, Rob Fresco, Ruben Santiago, Said Taghmaoui, Salman Bokhari, Sanford Bookstaver, Sanjay Chandani, Saxon Sharbino, Sean Glenn, Sofia Corliss, Soleil, Soleil Friedman, stars, Suzan Bymel, Talmud, The Fibonacci Project, Tim Kring, Touch, Tree of Life, Trevor Wilcox, Vicente Corliss, Wanda Peterson, Wendy Melvoin
Categories : Fox Shows, Touch, TV shows

TOUCH (S2E1) “Event Horizon” Recap

12 02 2013

“There are infinite ways to communicate.”

And so begins season 2 of TOUCH. After meeting Amelia’s mom, Lucy, (Maria Bello) at the pier at the end of season 1, Martin (Kiefer Sutherland) and Jake (David Mazouz) begin a new adventure: The Search for Amelia (Saxon Sharbino). Guillermo (Said Taghmaoui), a shadowy figure, kisses the tree of life, a pendant around his neck.

Martin gets Lucy up to speed. Jake plays with the crystal paperweight he got from his aunt in New York, the aunt who works for the evil Aster Corps. Jake looks at the map of the area. Martin tells Lucy Aster Corps staged Amelia’s death.

Jake stops Lucy to look at his notebook that shows the numbers 24, the next numbers in the sequence. The paperweight lights the spot on the map; 24 is translated also as 2-D.

Once at the spot, Jake jumps out of the car and Martin and Lucy follow as Martin says, “Welcome to my world.” They see the hotel sign pointing to room 2-D. The man behind the door is told they are looking for someone. Then they hear a young girl scream who takes the opportunity to jump out of the window. After a scuffle, the guy runs out of the room. He gets into the car, license plate 9NBW742.

Martin urges caution to Lucy and convinces her to do things his way. A journalist friend in Los Angeles can help them.

Guillermo is searching for a musician named Frederick LeMay. According to Guillermo, “Some same it’s like hearing the voice of angels” but he never wrote another. The waiter admires his pendant who Guillermo says is “perfection of the universe.” “Each has their own path to God, destiny preordained. It’s a mortal sin to deny it.” The waiter (Anthony Debaeck) is creeped out, especially when Guillermo admires his attire.

At Aster Corps, Calvin Norburg (Lukas Haas) is having a meltdown. He, too, has the next sequence in the Amelia equation. He wants out of the project and asks his friend, Tony (Adam Campbell) to help him get out of his contract. Calvin tells him that eventually the number will wrap around to the beginning. “This is the God sequence. It’s going to change humanity forever.” He cannot let Aster Corps have it.

Martin’s friend, Trevor (Greg Ellis), started a news organization similar to Huffington Post called “BreakWire.” Ruben Santiago (Ray Santiago) is their resident hacker who traced the license plate to a private investigator (Kirk B. R. Woller). The PI deposited cash into his bank account the same day he had an appointment with Lawrence J. Pearl (John Prosky), senior partner, of Lesser, Rasmussen and Howe, whose primary client is Aster Corps.

Frederick LeMay (Ray Proscia) is making bread. Guillermo turns the sign to “closed” and locks the door. Bread of Life: Meet the Tree of Life. Guillermo puts on the vinyl album. Frederick says from time to time people find him. Guillermo is not just seeking his autograph! He tells Frederick he has quit on God. Time to snuff him out: “You are in HIS way.” After giving him a cut that is similar to Guillermo’s neck wound, he says to a dying Frederick: “Thou shalt have no other gods before me.” At the moment of Frederick’s death, Jake lets out a gasp.

Jake passes the time playing video games and lands on 5227 every time. Meanwhile Trevor and Lucy play ping pong as Lucy gets background on Martin.

Meanwhile, Martin heads to the building where Pearl is to plant a sniffer program for Ruben, posing as a worker and heads to office # 5227. Norburg and Tony ever the elevator with Martin to meet with the law firm.

Norburg cannot get out of his contract. Pearl takes a call out in the hallway saying, “You LOST HER?” Martin and Pearl run into each other as Pearl heads back to his office to get a file and Martin is leaving his office. Martin knocks him over and bolts, just missing the elevator down with Calvin and Tony. As Martin passes the car they are in, Calvin opens the door and knocks out the security guy, ensuring Martin’s escape.

Guillermo discovers the sheet music and starts writing numbers for the notes, which, of course, are the God sequence.

Santiago finds lots of great information, including an address that Lucy connects to Jake’s scores on all the video machines, a place where they might find Amelia, 5227 Lindera, zip code 90046 [not a real address–bummer].

It leads to a crack house and find someone who they think is Amelia. Jakes come into the building. The PI hits Martin. Lucy and the PI search the house. “What is it with you people?” Martin knocks him out. This is not Amelia. While walking outside, Jake drops her backpack and a map falls out. Nicole (Madison Leisle) tells them some girl gave her the backpack near the pier (Amelia). Pearl apparently is her real father. Lucy makes her call home.

Norburg loses it as a stakeholder’s meeting. He says they are using this algorithm to program machines to be smarter than people. Then these machines will create new machines who are more intelligent than them. The human brain will become obsolete. It will be a “dystopian nightmare” brought to you by Aster Corps. “Evolution of the species in numerical form.” Tony tells him to prepare for the mother of all lawsuits, but someone in the audience is intrigued. Vikash Nayar (Dileep Rao) approaches. He has money, something Calvin needs, and no questions asked.

Guillermo is in a cab and when it jerks, pictures fall out of it, including one of Jake. Jake now has targets on his back, Aster Corps and Guillermo.

At the beach, Jake finds a knight chess piece after running and creating a circle in the sand.

The pattern resembles the tides and the scene shifts over to Amelia who sits at a table. IN WALKS NORBURG who says he heard she went to the beach that day. He tells her, “Your parents gave you away.” A knight piece is missing from her chess set. She is communicating with Jake!

Avram’s cousin (Harvey J. Alperin) gives Martin, Lucy and Jake a nice place to stay. Lucy says to Martin, “Nine hours and we’re already leaving together.” A record even for her.

Martin gets a call from Santiago. He discovered a death certificate on Jake, with the date issued blank, that says, “Injuries sustained in a car crash with 1 other fatality, his father, Martin Bohm. Funeral home is undisclosed. The certificate number is S0195520 (not sure if that is significant, but wrote it down anyway).

MY COMMENTS

I like the new changes. There are easter eggs if you look for them. An “aster” in biology is “a cellular structure shaped like a star, formed around each centrosome during mitosis.” If you look closely, you can see the star references. Another example is on Ruben’s desk. One of the puzzle toys on his desk are like Dr. Teller’s, the ones the boarding house tested Jake, the shape that is identical to the crystal he carries. Also, Ruben is using a screensaver on his computer that is full of stars. There are two stars that are on either side of the address at 5227 Lindera. That swirl pattern is in the gate of the crack house. The star of David on the door to Avram’s cousin’s house.

Jake needed out of the boarding house and to be with Martin as they find more pieces to the puzzle. A Los Angeles shoot provides them with access to more diverse scenery. At this point we are unsure of Calvin Norburg’s true intentions. My gut tells me that Amelia may have been feeding him the sequence and his math skills are what they appear. I 100% believe that Guillermo thinks he is doing God’s work and that is totally creepy. It adds an element of evil and explores the world of religious zealots. Going off the grid will be difficult for Martin. While Clea (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) was a great character to play off, it was something that was getting stale. Lucy and Martin understand each other and complement each other. There is potential for romance between them. Instead of having the “A” plot and “B” plot and Martin never seeing the connection between them, it looks, so far, as if the “A” plot and “B” plot have individualized stories that will eventually meet somewhere down the road. Season 1 was about Martin helping individuals reconnect while discovering what the danger was underneath. The wound Guillermo is creating on the 36 Righteous Ones is similar to the one on his own neck, so I am eager to see this episode with his backstory. This year the danger is brought to the forefront which propels the story forward.

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Tags: "Date Movie", "Event Horizon", 24, 36 righteous ones, 500, 5227, Adam Campbell, Alias, Amelia, Amelia Sequence, aster, Aster Corps, Avram, Ayelet Zurer, California, Calvin Norbug, Carlos Ragas, Carol Barbee, chess, Chinese legend, Citrus O, Clea, Closer, connected, conspiracy, Danny Glover, David Eick, David Mazouz, Dennis Hammer, Dileep Rao, Dimiter D. Marinov, Emrhys Casper, episode 1, episode 2, Fox Broadcasting, Fox VIP, Fringe, Greg Ellis, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Guillermo Ortiz, hidden clues, Hilda Bowen, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, Isabella Acres, Jake Bohm, jake does not have autism, Jericho, John Boyd, John Prosky, kabbalah, Katherine Pope, Kavi Raz, Kiefer Sutherland, knight, Kristin Burke, Lamed Vav Tzadikim, Linda Gehringer, Lost, Lucy Robbins, Lukas Haas, Madison Leisle, Marci Michelle, Maria Bello, Martin Bohm, metaphysical, Michael Amador, mind of God, mutism, mythos, Neal Ahern Jr., Nelson McCormack, New Girl, New York, PBMom, Peter Chernin, Preston James Hillier, Professor Teller, Randy Oglesby, Ray Santiago, red thread of fate, Ricky Russert, Rob Fresco, Rosemary Mathis, Ruben Santiago, S2E1, Said Taghmaoui, Saxon Sharbino, season 1, Soleil, stars, Suzan Bymel, Talmud, Tim Kring, Touch, Tree of Life, Trevor Wilcox, Wendy Benson
Categories : Fox Shows, Touch, TV shows

“TOUCH” Season 2 Premiere Preview

6 02 2013

During the last season of TOUCH, we learned that Jake (David Mazouz) is one of the 36 Righteous Ones (Lamed Vav Tzadikim in Judaism mysticism). According to the Talmud, “as a mystical concept, the number 36 is even more intriguing. It is said that at all times there are 36 special people in the world, and that were it not for them, all of them, if even one of them was missing, the world would come to an end.” The sequence Professor Teller was working on he called “The Amelia Sequence” also known as the “mind of God.” We learned that Aster Corps, the corporation that Abigail (Martin’s sister in law) works, is interested in knowing the Amelia sequence for their own greed. (Note: an “aster” is a cellular structure shaped like a star, formed around each centrosome during mitosis, although their corporate logo is not represented by a star which may or may not be an important symbol in the show. I did see several stars during the season 2 premiere episode). Jake was part of their bigger plan. Martin (Kiefer Sutherland) taps into people he helped in season 1 to help him break Jake out of the boarding facility and try to disappear. The numbers lead them to Los Angeles which lead them to finding Amelia’s mother (Maria Bello) at the pier.

Jake, Martin and Lucy

Last season, TOUCH ran into problems having Jake at a boarding facility (lack of mobility in the world), having Clea (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) as the adult Martin played off of (who was often tied to the boarding facility), and Martin who goes out on these quests for Jake. Clea, being the outsider, took awhile before she began to believe that the numbers Jake was showing the world were significant. Her dialogue lines almost became cliché, like Jack Bauer’s “We’re running out of time.” After a few episodes, while the thought was intriguing about the interconnectedness of everyone, a deeper mythos needed to emerge in order for the show to remain viable. As it was true with the shows “Alias” and “Lost,” TOUCH now moves into that realm.

TOUCH also had an image to get past. Unfortunately, it was not made clear that Jake did NOT have autism. Many media outlets reported it like that, and indeed on Netflix, they still describe season 1 as just that:

Even though during the episode, Martin Bohm says that he was diagnosed with many things, including autism, he never bought into any of those diagnoses, but he is curious about Jake’s mutism. Mutism is NOT autism. Because of this, there were strong reactions from families with kids with autism. Having a character with autism is tricky enough. If the creators get it wrong, the backlash is horrible. I cannot tell you how many people have said, “Well, they say the kid has autism but that character is all the misconceptions of autism in one child.” And I have to still correct them. Kiefer Sutherland was on Ellen this past week saying Jake had supernatural abilities and not autism.

At the end of season 1, with the mysticism of the 36 Righteous Ones, coupled with an evil player (Aster Corp), coupled with several unknown characters of good and/or evil, you begin to develop a path where good and evil will collide. TOUCH adds the elements of hidden clues within the episodes that Lost so perfectly executed. Often I have to watch the episodes several times to see the subtle hints, like in this new episode of season 2, “Event Horizon.” It took my second viewing to see the object on the hacker’s desk.

Guillermo Ortiz

While Gugu Mbatha-Raw was a great actress, the chemistry between her character and Martin Bohm could never become romantic. Thus, Maria Bello was added to the cast this season as Amelia’s mother, Lucy Robbins. This gives Martin another parent who understands exactly what he is going through, and gives way to the mission of season 2: Finding Amelia (Saxon Sharbino).

Added to the cast in this episode are Lukas Haas (24, Inception), as Calvin Norburg, who is part of Aster Corps. Actor Said Taghmaoui plays the character Guillermo Ortiz who has his own agenda. Fans of “24” will be pleased to see Greg Ellis (who played Michael Amador in the show “24”) as Jack’s former colleague, Trevor. Ray Santiago joins the cast as the hacker named Ruben Santiago. Dileep Rao (from Inception) joins the show for at least these 2 episodes. The episode also features another “24” and “Fringe” character actor, John Prosky, and “Date Movie” star Adam Campbell.

Calvin Norburg

The episode of “Closer” was written by Carol Barbee (Jericho, Three Rivers). Everything she touches turns to gold and this episode is no exception. “Event Horizon” was written by Tim Kring. David Eick adds a producing credit and we know the quality we can expect from his productions.

Some people we see in “Closer” are Ayelet Zurer, Linda Gehringer, Randy Oglesby (Argo), John Boyd (of 24 & Argo), Isabella Acres (as Soleil, which means sun, which is the brightest star in our galaxy).

After watching the two episodes, I think the show has improved a great deal. There is an element of danger that was elusive in season 1. Instead of the numbers pushing the path for Martin to find the clues, the numbers serve as markers for Martin and Lucy that they are on the right path. There are other signs given along the way as well. Jake undergoes dramatic character changes. While it is recommended you watch season 1 to understand the base story, a new viewer can easily jump into season 2 with the explanation of important plot points given in the narration and the first episode. There are several targets on Jake’s back so danger is all around and you have to be careful who you trust. The change of location shoot opens up the scenery which is also a refreshing change. I feel they make a joke within the dialogue: Lucy: “Maybe he’s ready for something new.” Martin: Aren’t we all?

I wish to thank FOX Broadcasting and the FOX VIP program for allowing me the privilege of the preview.

The special two-hour Season Two premiere episode of TOUCH, “Event Horizon/Closer,” airs Friday, Feb. 8 (8:00-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX. Join us on Twitter for a tweet up.

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Tags: "Date Movie", "Event Horizon", 24, 36 righteous ones, 500, 5227, Adam Campbell, Alias, Amelia, Amelia Sequence, aster, Aster Corps, Avram, Ayelet Zurer, California, Calvin Norbug, Carlos Ragas, Carol Barbee, chess, Chinese legend, Citrus O, Clea, Closer, connected, conspiracy, Danny Glover, David Eick, David Mazouz, Dennis Hammer, Dileep Rao, Dimiter D. Marinov, Emrhys Casper, episode 1, episode 2, Fox Broadcasting, Fox VIP, Fringe, Greg Ellis, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Guillermo Ortiz, hidden clues, Hilda Bowen, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, Isabella Acres, Jake Bohm, jake does not have autism, Jericho, John Boyd, John Prosky, kabbalah, Katherine Pope, Kavi Raz, Kiefer Sutherland, knight, Kristin Burke, Lamed Vav Tzadikim, Linda Gehringer, Lost, Lucy Robbins, Lukas Haas, Madison Leisle, Marci Michelle, Maria Bello, Martin Bohm, metaphysical, Michael Amador, mind of God, mutism, mythos, Neal Ahern Jr., Nelson McCormack, New Girl, New York, PBMom, Peter Chernin, Preston James Hillier, Professor Teller, Randy Oglesby, Ray Santiago, red thread of fate, Ricky Russert, Rob Fresco, Rosemary Mathis, Ruben Santiago, S2E1, S2E2, Said Taghmaoui, Saxon Sharbino, season 1, Soleil, stars, Suzan Bymel, Talmud, Tim Kring, Touch, Tree of Life, Trevor Wilcox, Wendy Benson
Categories : Fox Shows, Touch, TV shows

Fox Tuesday Tonight

2 10 2012

Last week, wedged between two new episodes of NEW GIRL, BEN AND KATE, and THE MINDY PROJECT pulled decent numbers in the ratings considering that these episodes were readily available on-line for weeks before the premiere to generate interest. Tonight, Raising Hope returns to the line-up.

Once again, thanks to the FOX VIP program, I was able to screen tonight’s episodes of BEN AND KATE and THE MINDY PROJECT.

Alan Ruck guest stars tonight on BEN AND KATE‘s episode called “Bad Cop/Bad Cop” as the principal of Maddie’s school. There is a scene that cracked me up where Ben (Nat Faxon) does an impression of a voice that sounds like Alan Ruck’s impression of his call to the principal as Cameron Frye in the movie “Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.” Kate (Dakota Johnson) has been lying about where she lives so Maddie (Maggie Elizabeth Jones) can get into a better public school, the parents of their friend, Tommy (Echo Kellum). Ben says, “May I remind you that you are a guest in your own home?” BEN AND KATE airing Tuesday, Oct. 2 (8:30-9:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.

On THE MINDY PROJECT, Mindy (Mindy Lahiri) and Danny (Chris Messina) interview for a new nurse in the practice, leaving Jeremy (Ed Weeks) to use his charms to fire the current nurse, Beverly (Beth Grant), in an aptly named episode, “Hiring and Firing.” I especially loved the name of one of the people interviewed, named Morgan “Ransom” Tookers (Ike Barinholtz), a reformed ex-convict. Ransom may seem to be a weird name, but I swear to you on my mother’s grave I have a neighbor whose name is Ransom and his dog’s name is Dexter. I have videotape of Dexter trying to jump our fence to get at my golden retriever, Maddie. THE MINDY PROJECT airing Tuesday, Oct. 2 (9:30-10:00 PM ET/PT) on FOX.

And don’t forget RAISING HOPE returns tonight as well, rounding out the Fox Comedy Tuesday block.

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Tags: Alan Ruck, Bad Cop/Bad Cop, Ben and Kate, Ben Fox, Beth Grant, Cameron Frye, Chris Messina, Dakota Johnson, Danny Castellano, Dr. Jeremy Reed, Echo Kellum, Ed Weeks, Ferris Bueller, Fox Broadcasting, Fox Tuesdays, Fox VIP, Hilda Bowen, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, Hiring and Firing, Ike Barinholtz, Kate Fox, Maddie, Maggie Elizabeth Jones, Mindy Lahiri, Morgan Ransom Tookers, Nat Faxon, New Girl, PBMom, Raising Hope, The Mindy Project
Categories : Fox Shows, New Girl, TV shows

So You Think You Can Dance — Season 9 — Top 20

28 06 2012

So You Think You Can Dance — Season 9 — Top 20 Revealed and Performance Show

What a great night to not only celebrate the 200th episode of So You Think You Can Dance, but to also welcome back the magnificent Mia Michaels. Cat Deeley looked particularly stunning this evening as she opened the show. Nigel Lythgoe announced that there would be two winners this season: One from the girls and one from the guys. On the judges panel this evening where our regulars, Nigel Lythgoe and Mary Murphy, and guest judge is adorkable Zooey Deschanel from Fox’s hit show “New Girl.”

Learning Their Fate — Whittling down 35 to the Top 20

People who are in: The first 3 people receiving a yes from the judges were Alexa Alexander, George Lawrence II and Will Thomas. Amber Jackson who had auditioned in season 6, got to the Green Mile, did not make it, auditioned again, and did not even get that far, and said she would not audition again was through. She had grown a great deal emotionally and came back. Perseverance and a positive attitude paid off well for her. After a fake out that made Lindsay think she was out, Witney Carson and friend Lindsay Arnold were both in. Nick Bloxson-Carson also won a spot. Daniel Baker, who had left his job in the San Francisco Ballet and Chehon Wespi-Tschopp who left his job in New York City, both were in. Eliana Girard in her blue-suede shoes and bubbly personality was also on the show. Both Tiffany Maher and Audrey Case went in together. Debbie Allen said she was almost invisible but then she pushed her way to the front. As Tiffany receives a yes, Audrey looks worried. Adam Shankman breaks the news that she made it as well. She cannot believe it and asks, “Wait….are you sure?” She goes and calls her mom. Janelle Issis also was in disbelief as Adam welcomed her into the top 20. Adam said, “Honey, OWN this. You’re the first belly dancer in the top 20.” Janelle is a bit accident prone. She smacked her nose going back through the door to the waiting area and was ill this evening and told not to dance in the performance show. Mary Murphy did a silly version of Simon Says with Ryan-Gosling-look-alike Matthew Kazmierczak with which he readily complied and then received a yes. Dareian Kujawa told the panel he was working on his feet positioning, but they are like brutes. Lil’C tells him to keep working on that because he is in to the top 20. Janaya French moved to Los Angeles after she Vegas week and has had some highs and lows. She is through. After telling the last two girls that they were looking for star quality this year, Tyce Diorio informed Amelia Lowe she was put through as the final female contestant. Mary was telling Cole Horibe about hills and valleys in a dancer’s life and compliments him on his uniqueness. She sees no valleys for him–he is put through to the top 20. Namaste, Cole. Stepper Brandon Mitchell joined the top 20. Cyrus “Glitch” Spencer, who struggled with choreography in Vegas, but always had a great attitude, showed an ability to adapt quickly, and has that special “it” factor. Not only does he radiate this wonderful energy, but he has quite the fan base in America. Even though his dancing might not be up to par with some of the others, his personality will take him far. Nigel commented that he has “never seen anybody like Cyrus in my entire life.”

People who are out: I was surprised by the no given to Megan Branch. She was really good, but they are looking for variety. Abigail Ruz, Kaitlynn Edgar, Katie Muth, and Rebecca Hart were encouraged to come back next year. Sadly, Joshua Alexander was a no this season. No one can really know if the trip to the emergency room that stopped him from performing his final solo became a factor. They insisted Joshua return next season and I hope he does as well. He is a tremendous dancer. They also passed this year on Blake Zelesnikar, Jasmine Mason, and Daniel Kermidas. Jill Johnson, who went into the judges’ room together with Amelia Lowe, was sent home. Tappers did not fare well this season, sending Aaron Turner and Zack Everheart home. Going into the judges’ room with Brandon Mitchell was Devon McCullough. Adam said they would see Devon next year. With Cyrus in, that meant that Feliciano Turk, who had wonderful moments in Vegas, was out.

Dance #1

Dancers: Alexa, George, Will, Amber
Song: “We Found Love (BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge)” by JessieJ
Choreographer: Tyce Diorio

My thoughts: They had great expression, reach, lines, timing, partnering. They blended and complimented each other with a very fluid flow. I got goosebumps (and if you haven’t read my blog before, my goosebumps never lie) towards the end.

The Judges: Nigel gave constructive criticism to Will about keeping up with the shorter dancers. He had encouraging words for Alexa and Amber. To George, Nigel said that if every light in the studio went out, he would still shine. Mary complimented Will’s partnering skills. She complimented Alexa on dealing with her demons. George’s leaps were phenomenal and Amber shed her emotional baggage. Zooey complimented the team work; she could not wait to see more.

Dance #2

Dancers: Witney, Lindsay and Nick
Song: “Dance Again” by Jennifer Lopez featuring Pitbull
Choreographer: Jason Gilkison

My thoughts: It had great energy and great partnering. It didn’t floor me (sorry).

The judges: Mary gave a “woo” that sounded like the train was still in the station and not the hot tamale train that was moving. Zooey said the girls looked like twins and were incredible. Nick kept up with them as well.

Dance #3

Dancers: Daniel, Chehon, and Eliana
Song: “Romantic Inclinations/Like a Shot/Fury” by P. Mottram/S. Everitt/G Shadid, T. Marberger
Choreographer: Desmond Richardson and Dwight Rhoden

My thoughts: Goosebumps, but not the entire song. It looked like at times the boys were flinching when they got too close to Eliana, and then when the judges were commenting, it was apparent that the costume was inflicting wounds on them. Boo to the costuming department on that one.

The judges: Nigel commented the boys on their bravery at leaving paying jobs to come to the show. He also complimented Eliana on her classical skills. Mary called Eliana a ballet warrior. Mary went from “wow” or “woo” in her hot-tamale-train voice but her train whistle did not sound like it was quite fully on the train.

Dance #4

Dancers: Audrey and Tiffany (Janelle was out per doctor’s orders)
Song: “Sail” by AWOLNATION
Choreographer: Sonya Tayeh (assisted by Season 8 winner Melanie Moore)

My thoughts: Audrey and Tiffany had great timing, wonderful warrior spirit and great team work. It did not give me the goosebumps though.

The judges: Zooey said they made an amazing, great pair. The choreography was incredible. Tiffany was very strong and Audrey was graceful, which made for a good pairing. Nigel said that they looked like Pebbles (of the Flintstones) dancing.

Dance #5

Dancers: Dareian, Amelia, Janaya, and Matthew
Song: “Modern Drift” by Efterklang
Choreographer: Stacey Tookey

My thoughts: My eyes were fixed on Amelia. She reminded me of my favorite from last season, Melanie Moore, especially in the jump into Dareian’s arms.

The judges: Zooey thought it was delicate and beautiful, like watching a painting move. Amelia shines like she irradiates light. Mary gave accolades to Stacy Tookey for the routine. She said Dareian had great strength, power and partnering. Amelia was fabulous. Janaya was not on their radar at first, but she is “now out of that radar.” I think Mary meant to say she was now ON their radar. Mary still loves Matthew.

Dance #6

Dancers: Brandon, Cole, Cyrus
Song: “Resolve” by Nathan Lanier
Choreographer: Christopher Scott (and Marko Germar said on Twitter he assisted in this routine)

My thoughts: I loved the baseball voiceover using their real names. Very clever, very inventive. It was a fantastic idea for a routine especially with the baseball all-stars game coming up on Fox. Christopher Scott did a wonderful job highlight each one of their strengths but blended with perfection. I did not get chills but I enjoyed it immensely.

The judges: Cat Deeley said she had the first chills of the season (I know she is not a judge but I love her as a host). Nigel commented that in front of them was a stepper, an animator and a martial artist and that they complimented each other, and complimented Christopher for highlighting each one of their strengths. Mary said they “hit it out of the ballpark with that one.”

Dance #7

Dancers: The girls
Song: “Where The Light Gets In” by Sennen
Choreographer: Travis Wall
Story: The door is the gateway to the afterlife.

My thoughts: Travis Wall’s choreography always seems to elicit a deep emotional response from me, much like Mia Michaels. It was like watching angels dancing on the plane of existence between the two worlds. I got goosebumps about halfway in and had tears in my eyes by the end of the routine.

The judges: Nigel said it was like frieze on a Greek vase and complimented Travis on his growth since being a contestant on SYTYCD. Zooey said it was a beautiful routine for beautiful girls. Cat mentioned the word “ethereal.”

Dance #8

Dancers: The boys
Song: “Precognition (Steed Lord Machine Mix)” by Steed Lord
Choreographer: Sonya Tayeh
Story: They had to fight to win on the show. During the footage of learning the routine, she said having this group is like releasing the wolves to the masses (and I instantly pictured “Twilight”). She wants them to be exposed physically to expose the inner man. Brandon was comfortable with the male-male partnering ’cause he “likes the ladies.”

My thoughts: Each group of guys got to show their strengths but it did not illicit an emotional response from me like the girls did. I definitely did not like the high-waisted costumes. The guys looked very uncomfortable in them.

The judges: Nigel does not like the pants either (called them maternity pants). He chuckles at Will because he is not as buff as the other guys. The routine was athletic, gymnastic and strong, and the boys had to be that way now. Mary enjoyed George’s assisted lift. She loved the routine and thought the guys were great. Zooey would love to join in with them, and the boys were encouraging her to come up and do so. She thought it was all fantastic.

Dance #9

Dancers: The top 20
Song: “Eyes (Coachella Live 2012 Version)” by Kaskade
Choreographer: MIA MICHAELS IS BACK!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

My thoughts: I love Mia and have missed her being on the show. I got goosebumps when they moved their sunglasses off their eyes onto their heads right at the part of the show that said, “look into my eyes.” Eyes are the window into a person’s soul. The choreography keeps building throughout the entire song. I had goosebumps the entire song. And everyone stepped up.

The judges: Nigel kept it short and sweet, “Welcome home momma; you’ve been missed.”

It was a phenomenal ending to a terrific beginning for the journey of season 9’s top 20. They take a week off for our United States July 4th birthday, and will be back on July 11th.

My Early Favorites (in no particular order and I reserve the right to change my mind at any time)

Guys: Cole Horibe, Cyrus “Glitch” Spencer, Daniel Baker, George Lawrence II, Dareian Kujawa
Girls: Amelia Lowe, Janelle Issis, Eliana Gerard, Amber Jackson, Alexa Anderson

Who are yours?

National Dance Day

The third-annual National Dance Day will take place on Saturday, July 28. There is a hip-hop master class with Lauren Gottlieb, Lauren Froderman, and Brandon Bryant video and a Zumba fitness video for people of all levels with Kass Martin, Gina Grant and SYTYCD All-Stars Allison Holker and Ade Obayomi. That Saturday evening, there will be a Dizzy Feet Foundation Gala at the Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in the Music Center. Desmond Richardson will be performing as will Alvin Ailey, American Ballet Theater, LXD, and the All-Stars from SYTYCD (past and present). Click on the logos below to learn more.

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Tags: "Dance Again", "Eyes (Coachella Live 2012 Version)", "Modern Drift", "Precognition (Steed Lord Machine Mix)", "Resolve", "Romantic Inclindations/Like a Shot/Fury", "Sail", "We Found Love (BBC Radio 1 Live Lounge)", "Where The Light Gets In", . Aaron Turner, 200th episode, Abigail Ruz, Adam Shankman, Ade Obayomi, Alexa Alexander, Allison Holker, Alvin Ailey, Amber Jackson, Amelia Lowe, American Ballet Theater, Audrey Case, AWOLNATION, ballroom, beauty, belly dancer, Blake Zelesnikar, Brandon Bryant, Brandon Mitchell, California, Cat Deeley, Chehon Wespi-Tschopp, Christopher Scott, Cole Horibe, competition, contemporary, crying, Cyrus "Glitch" Spencer, dance, Daniel Baker, Daniel Kermidas, Dareian Kujawa, Debbie Allen, Desmond Richardson, Devon McCullough, Dizzy Feet Foundation, Dizzy Feet Foundation Gala, Dorothy Chandler Pavilion in the Music Center, Dragon House, Dwight Rhoden, Efterklang, Eliana Girard, emotional baggage, entertainment, Feliciano Turk, fitness, Fox, Fox Broadcasting, Fox VIP, gateway to the afterlife, George Lawrence II, Gina Grant, Green Mile, Hilda Bowen, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, hip-hop, hot tamale train, Janaya French, Janelle Issis, Jasmine Mason, Jason Gilkison, Jennifer Lopez featuring Pitbull, JessieJ, Jill Johnson, Joshua Alexander, judging, July 28 2012, Kaitlynn Edgar, Kaskade, Kass Martin, Katie Muth, Las Vegas, Lauren Froderman, Lauren Gottlieb, Lil'C, Lindsay Arnold, Los Angeles, LXD, Marko Germar, Mary Murphy, master class, Matthew Kazmierczak, Megan Branch, Melanie Moore, Mia Michaels, Nathan Lanier, National Dance Day, Nevada, New Girl, New York City, Nick Bloxson-Carson, Nigel Lythgoe, P. Mottram/S. Everitt/G. Shadid /T.Marberger, PBMom, perseverance, Rebecca Hart, San Francisco, Season 9, Sennen, So You Think You Can Dance, Sonya Tayeh, Stacey Tookey, Steed Lord, SYTYCD, tears, Tiffany Maher, Travis Wall, Twilight, Tyce Diorio, welcome back momma, Will Thomas, Witney Carson, Zack Everheart, Zooey Deschanel, Zumba
Categories : Fox Shows, New Girl, So You Think You Can Dance, TV shows, Uncategorized

Touch Recap: Safety In Numbers

28 05 2012

(A bit behind so I’ll keep these brief so I can be current before the season finale). I thought I’d try writing this up in arcs, but since they are interconnected, it makes that difficult. Also thought I would maybe sum up the last 6 episodes but that was not going to work, so back to the old format.

This episode’s important number was 3287 and what is up with door #6 at the Board and Care?

The opening starts with a reflective thought of evolution, “If a species wants to survive, it has to prove it deserves to.” Jake (David Mazouz) talks about how fire ants can hold onto each other like a living raft waiting for the water to recede and how did that all begin that they knew to do that?

At The Claremont, address 3287, a man (Rob Benedict) places a paper at the door. Another man picks it up. Jake is sitting at the door with the number 6 on it (room 122 on the placard). Jake narrating the dialogue lines: “What if you were the one who knew what needed to be done but you had no words? How do you make the others understand? How do you call for help? ”

We’ve been experiencing this with my son. He is nonverbal. We try a communication system. He seems to have this burst of learning. Then he refuses to use it, and it leaves him. First it was sign language, then others in between, and last year, it was with a program called Proloquo2go (pronounced PRO-LOW-QUO-TWO-GO) for the IPhone/IPad. He seemed to just excel in it, and now he gets agitated whenever we ask him to use it to communicate. He can’t ask for help. All he can do is communicate through behavior. Let’s just say he has been VERY LOUD the last few months.

Back to Touch, Jake places a call to Martin (Kiefer Sutherland) who hears static on the phone but knows Jake needs him. Like a Bat Signal. Martin opens the door to Jake’s room, but he’s gone. They find Jake at door 6. Jake stuffs the paper into Martin’s coat and returns to his room, but gives him direct, sustained eye contact (something Jake does not do). The picture is a dragon.

Martin visits Professor Arthur Teller (Danny Glover). Martin asked if he would spend his life chasing down numbers for Jake. Teller reminded Martin that Jake feels the pain of these threads, real physical pain. The professor warns that Jake has a higher purpose and he won’t be the only one that notices (foreshadow for future episodes).

Meanwhile in Soweto, South Africa, Grace (user name Grace22) (actress Yetide Badaki) takes a career aptitude and placement test (Version 1.6) in her village. Her ID to complete the test is 3287. Baruti (Darrell Luke) tells Grace she needs to leave her friend, Sauda (Khanya Mkhize), and take a job in the city. A young boy watches from the window. The two boys, Thabo (Dante Brown) and Farai (Kwesi Boakye) put a bottle cap in the window. I’m guessing they intend to go back later.

Grace and Sauda in Soweto

The Worldwide Dance Battle is on the TV at the Center and Jake focuses in on it. The audience would be picking a winner.

A woman in a red dress (Olesya Rulin) goes through security at the dance battle. She is supposed to meet someone outside a tent. The security guy (Brett Wagner) is very kind to her.

A taxi hits a homeless woman who we are led to think is Clea’s mom (Taxi 4R21) in front of Martin. The man from the beginning of the show steals a book she has. A nurse comes to attend to the woman (Marci Michelle). Martin runs after him.

It’s Marci Michelle!

Meanwhile the Beastmaster (Stephen “tWitch’ Boss) is on the stage, dancing to “I’m Sexy and I Know It.” I adore tWitch from So You Think You Can Dance. He is among my top 20 favorite dances ever on the show (especially the one with Alex). I digress.

Twitch from So You Think You Can Dance.

Back in Soweto, a violent man named Fumbe (Ike Onuoha) is with Grace’s friend Sauda. Fumbe has beaten her. Grace wants her to leave. Fumbe freaks and strikes Grace to the ground.

Martin catches up with “The Invisible Prince.” He shows Martin that the book is his; the woman stole it from him. The book is similar to what Jake gave Martin in his pocket. The Prince is just like Jake but he can speak and is an adult. He tells Martin, “The dragon is loose.” Was Martin looking at this man concerned that Jake would go insane as he aged?

Martin and The Invisible Prince. Is this Jake’s future fate?

Jake is playing with the red car again. Clea (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) is doing RFFC’s with him (applied behavior analysis term for receptive by feature, function, class). She takes the car to try to get Jake to give her eye contact. He grabs the car, giving her a side glance only, and walks downstairs to door 6 again. He slides the car under the door.

The kids in South Africa have aspirations. They want to compete in this internet dance battle.

The Prince is upset that he almost missed changing a light at a corner for a woman to cross without waiting (Kate Fuglei). He then goes and buys a red flower and puts it on the bus bench for a different woman (Janeline Hayes). The Prince pauses in front of The Claremont for a moment before moving on. He tells Martin that he tried to slay the dragon with a magic sword but failed. He offered it to The King and he buried it deep within the Mountain of Clare (I’m guessing The Claremont) behind a wall of stones. The final battle was tonight. Then the two women arrive at their destination together in a building with a red dragon sign on the outside: Morton Starling Finances.

Izumi (Satomi Okuno) and Miyoko (May Miyata) from Japan are at the Coachella Valley festival because The Morticians will be playing. They’ve been in the running thread since the pilot. They converse with the girl in the red dress using a translator app on 2 phones (one translating to English what they said in Japanese; the other translating her English to Japanese). Clever! Apparently the red-dressed girl got stood up by a guy she met online (imagine that). The Morticians will be playing in 15 minutes, so they leave, but one phone is left behind. This is the phone that has been roaming the world since the pilot episode in January.

Izumi and Miyoko from Japan here for the Morticians, and the girl in the red dress.

The women who the Prince was connecting had a conversation at the elevator to which Martin listens. They are plaintiffs in some class-action suit and they are about to settle. They talk about “Roger King” and Martin knows that name. Martin pretends he is representing Roger King to go to the meeting. A journalist, Rush Middleton (Graham Hamilton), who was a former colleague that Martin would request bring him coffee, saw Martin and thought he was there in a journalistic capacity. Martin thinks he can get Roger King to talk, so Rush gives him the address: 3287 Avondale (Just FYI, The Claremont’s real address in NYC is 229 East 12th Street, New York, NY 10003).

Clea asks Sheri (Roxana Brusso) about room 6; Sheri says it is empty. A phone call from 212-920-6922 (reverse white pages says this is a phone number, a landline in the Bronx) comes in to Clea’s phone. It is her mother. When she answers, she is told her mother is in the hospital.

Martin goes to The Claremont. Charlie King (Vince Grant) Roger’s son, tells him Roger is dead. When Martin says, “The Invisible Prince” an open door awaits. The Invisible Prince was a bedtime story that Roger used to tell. The Invisible Prince had to do good deeds in secret or they would not count. Charles says Walt (the Prince) was a genius at numbers and produced a financial system that made Morton Starling billions. Charlie’s son Matt (Elijah Nelson) is also watching the internet dance battle. He was “The Domin8tor”. Because he bowed out of the competition so Charlie and Martin could do some internet research, it led to an opening for 4Soweto. But I’m getting ahead of myself. (Just FYI, the web address on the computer is not a real site). From the “Invisible Prince” story, Charlie says it was the magic sword of truth.

Clea’s mom apparently is schizophrenic (supposedly; I’m wondering if she isn’t like Jake). She asks the nurse if the woman was hit by the taxis near the tracks at Queensboro Plaza. The nurse (Deidrie Henri) says yes. Her mother is in room 5290, but ta-da, it’s not her mother. The woman stole her mother’s phone.

Sheri recognizes Teller at the Board and Care. Teller asks for a tour because he is considering placing a patient there. She obliges a short tour.

Martin finds a box requiring a combination, but Charlie does not know it. The audience knows 3287 will open that lockbox. Documents that were never previously opened are in there–the magic sword of truth. It’s now 5:43 p.m. and Martin has to RUN to get to the New York Herald–16 minutes to go 22 blocks. If this is possible is if this is a north-south street or an east/west avenue in New York City because the lengths are different. A 20-block street equals about a mile. And that’s not counting traffic lights.

Jake begins to hum and catches the attention of Sheri who thinks he is in pain or something. Teller observes. It gets louder. Sauda is being beaten in Soweto and is screaming. Martin is running. Grace rhythmically drugs on a pot. Jake is screaming (to what Clea previously described about her mother screaming when the trains rushed by that scared the crap out of her). The women in Soweto come out with their pots and rhythmically drum in solidarity to support Sauda.

Thabo did not show up, so Farai dances instead. The crowd goes wild. They show room 6 again. The red car gets pushed back out into the hallway. Sheri lied about it being empty.

Walt King wrote a memo showing Morton Starling the flaws in his financial model design and the company exploited it to make millions. Rush does not understand Martin’s intention. Martin replies that it was the same reason he told him to get him coffee everyday–because he knew Rush would be a great reporter. Rush offers Martin a by-line, but Martin refuses, saying it would be their little secret, otherwise it would not count.

The girl in the red dress meets the Beastmaster who just lost to the 10-year-old in the dance competition. They bond over the videos from the cell phone that has traveled the world.

Martin meets up with Walt and tells him they fixed the thread. The Invisible Prince then knights Martin as the Invisible Knight. Martin relays a message that Charlie and his family welcome him to come home any time he wants.

A montage begins: Clea sees the red car in the hallway and knows Sheri lied. Teller creates a file on Jake. The reporter on TV (Craig Stepp) shows that Main Street won out over Wall Street. The 2 women from the lawsuit toast their victory.

The Invisible Prince watches his brother and his family come home to the Mountain of Clare, his face showing the longing to be with them but knowing he has a greater purpose to fulfill. Sauda is taking a computer test to be able to move to the city with Grace and rise above the domestic violence. Martin tucks Jake into his bed donned with red sheets and a comforter of red with white circles (patterns). Clea returns Jake’s red car to him. Clea sees herself in Martin’s actions and promises to be more understanding.

Martin starts a bedtime story for Jake about The Invisible Knight who served The Silent King and together they helped people they did not even know were there. And The Silent King closed his eyes and went to Dreamland.

Jake listens to the The Silent King story.

What I adore about this show is the thoughtfulness they put into providing clues for us. Like the eye contact Jake gave Martin to communicate how important this task was. The running theme of the color red–the car, the flower, the dress, Jake’s sheets/comforter, the red dragon logo on the company’s building. When we were first working with Patrick, we noticed he stopped on the color red of his One Fish, Two Fish book. The group of people working with him asked, “How can we use the color red to help him?” They came up with these thoughts: Use red lipstick so that he will look at your lips when you are speaking. Eat something red (popsicle or lollypop) so he can see movement of the tongue. Use red to put near your eyes so he will give greater eye contact. But I think the show is emphasizing the red string of fate. I wonder if Jakes gets any peace from the pain in the dream state. What I think they can improve upon is uberfans who adored Lost for the same reason: The clues, trying to figure out the larger story. Perhaps they can put more real-life clues into the show. For example, on “24” one of the times they had a cell phone number, fans from 24 actually called the number and got a message from the actors. What if one of the numbers could provide the uberfan with additional exclusive clues that they would not get anywhere else. Lost created a whole web presence built about its mythos. I think the producers of Touch should do the same. It helps us to experience the show on a different level than just viewing. It is about participating and making the global connections.

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Tags: 212-820-6922, 3287, 4soweto, applied behavior analysis, autism, bat signal, Brett Wagner, Carol Barbee, Carol Barbee is a genius, cell phones, Charlie King, Chinese legend, circumstance, Clea Hopkins, Coachella, communication programs, connected, Craig Stepp, Danny Glover, Dante Brown, Darrell Lake, David Mazouz, Deidrie Henri, Dennis Hammer, destined lovers, dragon, Elijah Nelson, Fox Broadcasting, Fox VIP, Grace22, Graham Hamilton, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Hawaii-Five-O, Heroes, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, humanity, I'm Sexy and I Know It, Ike Onuoha, IPad, IPhone, Izumi and Miyoko, Jake Bohm, Janeline Hayes, Jericho, Karen David, Kate Fuglei, Katherine Pope, Khanya Mhkiza, Kiefer Sutherland, Kwesi Boakye, magic sword of truth, Main Street versus Wall Street, Marci Michelle, Martin Bohm, Matt King, May Miyata, metaphysical, Morton Starling Finances, Mountain of Clare, mutism, Neal Ahern Jr., New Girl, New York, number 6, Olesya Rulin, One Fish Two Fish, Parenthood, Peter Chermin, Professor Arthur Teller, Proloquo2go, Queensboro Plaza, red, red car, red comforter, red dragon, red sheets, red thread of fate, Rob Benedict, Roger King, Roxana Brusso, Rush Middleton, Satomi Okuno, savant, So You Think You Can Dance, soulmates, South Africa, Soweto, Stephen 'tWitch' Boss, stretch, tangle, Terra Nova, The Claremont, The Invisible Knight, The Invisible Prince, The Morticians, The Silent King, Three Rivers, Tim Kring, time, Touch, Twitch, Vince Grant, worldwide dance battle, Yetide Badaki
Categories : Fox Shows, Touch

Fox’s New Comedy Series Ben and Kate

14 05 2012

(Press release) BEN AND KATE

What happens when an exuberant, irresponsible dreamer who always says “yes” moves in with his overly responsible little sister to help raise her five-year-old daughter? BEN AND KATE, a new single-camera young ensemble comedy, follows these odd-couple siblings as they push each other out of their comfort zones and into real life. KATE FOX (Dakota Johnson, “The Social Network”) followed the rules all her life…until she got pregnant in college and dropped out just shy of graduation. After the birth of her daughter, MADDIE (Maggie Jones, “We Bought a Zoo,” “Footloose”), Kate put her twenties on hold. Now working as a bar manager to make ends meet and maximize her time with five-year-old Maddie, she’s uber-prepared for every possible catastrophe – except for the arrival of her older brother, BEN FOX (Nat Faxon, “Bad Teacher”). Ben likes trouble a lot more than his sister does. His infectious energy makes you want to follow him into any number of bad ideas. He’ll totally screw up your life, but somehow, you’ll feel good about it. Where Kate is all about planning and preparing, Ben is big on spontaneity and out-of-the-box ideas. But don’t let the Velcro wallet fool you – he’ll probably be a millionaire someday. When Ben comes to crash on Kate’s couch for a few days, he finds a sad state of affairs. Kate’s surviving, but not living. Ben realizes that for the first time in their lives, Kate needs his help and he’s determined to bring some much-needed chaos into her overly stable world. He starts by offering to help look after Maddie so Kate can get back to experiencing her mid-twenties and making mistakes, since the one real “mistake” she’s made turned out to be the best thing that ever happened to her. Always there to help with Ben’s crazy schemes is his partner-in-crime, TOMMY (newcomer Echo Kellum), who worships Ben like a hero and nurses a serious crush on Kate. Kate’s British best friend, BJ (Lucy Punch “Bad Teacher”), is a cocktail waitress at the bar that Kate manages and an all-around hot mess who would do anything for Kate, even if her advice is often questionable and occasionally illegal. From writer/executive producer Dana Fox (NEW GIRL, “What Happens in Vegas”) and executive producer/director Jake Kasdan (NEW GIRL, “Bad Teacher”), BEN AND KATE is a heartwarming story of deeply mismatched siblings: a sister who needs to go for her dreams and a brother who needs to get his head out of the clouds.

PRODUCTION COMPANIES: 20th Century Fox Television, Chernin Entertainment

CREATOR/WRITER/EXECUTIVE PRODUCER: Dana Fox

EXECUTIVE PRODUCERS: Peter Chernin, Katherine Pope

EXECUTIVE PRODUCER/DIRECTOR: Jake Kasdan

CAST: Dakota Johnson as Kate, Nat Faxon as Ben, Maggie Jones as Maddie, Lucy Punch as BJ, Echo Kellum as Tommy

Follow on Twitter at: @BenandKate

Follow on Facebook at: http://facebook.com/BenandKate

“Ben and Kate” will air Tuesdays at 8:30 ET/7:30 Central right after “Raising Hope.”

Watch the preview on YouTube at: http://youtu.be/pDWw07Nob9k

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Tags: 2012-2013 season, Ben and Kate, comedy, Dakota Johnson, Dana Fox, Echo Kellum, entertainment, Fox Broadcasting, Fox Upfronts, Fox Upfronts 2012, Jake Kasdan, Katherine Pope, Lucy Punch, Maggie Jones, Nat Faxon, New Girl, Peter Chermin, Raising Hope, Tuesday lineup
Categories : Fox Shows

Touch Recap: 1+1=3

29 03 2012

By Hilda Clark Bowen

When does 1+1=3? It is a mathematical fallacy, but for some, it means synergy. Synergy, according to Webster’s Dictionary, is “the working together of two things to produce an effect greater than the sum of their individual effects.”

When we left off in the pilot, Jake (David Mazouz) had made a connection with his father, Martin Bohm (Kiefer Sutherland), for the first time, indeed not only giving him his first hug ever, but also a clue to his next red thread to untangle, the phone number: 718-673-5296. Trying to see if there was a clue in that phone number, I dialed it. It is an actual landline in the Greater New York area, but the phone number is not programmed to take messages.

The new show opens in what looks to be a country in India perhaps, with a young man (Karan Soni) on a bench with a pottery statue, and continues with short clips of all the people involved in tonight’s episode. Clea (Gugu Mbatha-Raw) returns to the Bohm’s home to take Jake back to the facility for an assessment. Despite what she witnessed, she still has to follow her job’s mandate, but reassures Martin she is on his side–she wants Jake home with Martin for good. When he politely refuses to cooperate, she politely informs him she’ll need to call the police. He reconsiders and walks over to explain things to Jake. Jake writes the phone number he wants his father to follow in the palm of his hand and leaves with Clea.

Martin looks up the phone number on his reverse directory and it belongs to Arnie’s Pawn Shop, 318 East Fordham Road, New York, New York. East Fordham is actually a street in the Bronx (I lived in the Bronx for a short time), but 318 does not exist (316 does), although I do like the call back to the first episode where 318 was important (the school bus, the fireman’s badge number, the number of the street address of the Teller Institute on West Tesla Street in the Bronx, the date and time to run into the fireman).

At the JFK Airport where Martin works, his path crosses with Lyov, a dog going to Moscow. Upstairs in the passenger area, flight attendant, Becca Klepper (Amy Sloan) is rushing and runs directly into the young man from India, scattering the ashes of his dead father that were contained within the pottery piece on the terminal’s ground. Becca meets up with Martin on the tarmac. She is supposed to escort Lyov to Moscow. While putting the dog on the truck, Martin accidentally pops the crate open and Lyov takes off.

At the assessment center, Jake repetitively writes 5296. Not understanding that he cannot just pop random numbers that have no connectivity out of his head, Clea asks him to use popcorn kernels to “guess” her phone number or address. Instead, he creates a smiley face for her. When she tries to get Jake to use paint to express his numbers, he uses it to paint his hand instead. Clea looks defeated. While getting him a wipe to clean up his hand, Jake has bolted from the room already but not before writing 5296 for her. Jake puts his orange handprint on a door with the number 6 on it in the basement. When Clea notices all the doors are locked, she subsequently notices the keypad at the exit door. She puts in 5296 and the door opens. In a beautiful scene, as the door opens, the sunlight shines on Clea faces, a light that is leading her to take another step in believing that nothing Jake does is random.

The young ladies from Japan from the pilot episode, Miyoko (May Miyata) and Izumi (Satomi Okuno) arrive at JFK Airport on their way to Los Angeles to the Coastabella Music Festival. They are fans of the group “The Morticians.” Their physical path crosses with Becca, the flight attendant, at the terminal. Becca runs into the young man she bumped into earlier, as she missed her flight chasing after the dog, and he keeps trying to get to New York Stadium but the bus keeps dropping him back at the terminal. They discover both their fathers love baseball. He is trying to get his father’s ashes at center field. Becca admires him, saying “some of us will never get the chance.” Seeing how lost he looks trying to navigate just to get to the cab, she offers to assist him in getting to the stadium.

Martin enters the pawn shop. He overhears the man say, “I’m ready.” Martin does not understand. He explains to Arnie Klepper (Jude Ciccolella) that he was the guy who phoned him. Arnie still thinks he is crazy. A man walks in to rob the store (Blake Shields). The way the exchange goes between the masked man and Arnie, and the fact that he was surprised to see Martin there, I think Arnie wanted the man with the gun to shoot him (the opening having revealed that Arnie has cancer). Martin rushes him, the gun goes off, but Arnie only receives a shoulder wound. Martin pulls the mask off the man, now being able to identify him. A baseball lands at the young man’s eye level and he seems to recognize what it is. As the man flees, Martin turns over and sees a number at the top of the doorway where the chime is: 318. Obviously 318 is playing a significant role in now two episodes of Touch.

The young man meets Yuri Andreev (Mark Ivanir) in an alley, showing him a bunch of jewelry. The young man owes Yuri $10,000, but “the deal fell apart.” He tries to offer him a baseball that he says belonged to “Patrick McGrath’s home run in game 7 of the 2009 League Championship” that is worth $50,000. He tries to appeal to Yuri to give him a second chance. Yuri throws the ball out of the alley and says he has 3 hours to get him his money.

On the bus, Becca discovers that the young man carrying his father’s ashes has not made prior arrangements at the stadium and warns him that it may not happen. He says he must do this because he made a promise. His father was greatly disappointed in him as a son. Despite that, he feels he must do this because it is his duty as a son to show his father respect. Becca begins to cry. The young man comforts her.

Martin shares what has happened with Dr. Arthur Teller (Danny Glover). He offers Martin another orange soda (like in the first episode). Martin is trying to figure out what he is supposed to or not supposed to do in these situations. When there is cosmic pain that needs to be healed, Jake sees and feels that. Martin receives a phone call from Clea that Jake is gone, but when he looks up and out the window, he sees Jake there. But a bus pulls up (number 36) and Jake gets on. Martin runs after the bus and gets on (wait a minute–he didn’t pay his fare!)

In Moscow, Pavel Andreev (Daniel Polo) and his mom (Tatiana Chekhova) talk in the car before a talent show at school. Most of the other children do not seem to like him, and he hoped to impress them with magic. Only a young girl (Alex Peters) who adores him claps for him. Pavel is in emotional pain when the kids laugh as he tries to exit the stage and breaks a glass. Returning to the magic shop, Pavel demands the product did not live up to the advertising. The man (Eugene Alper) insists there are no bad products, only bad magicians. On the way out, Pavel spots the young girl from the audience. When inquiring why everyone hates him, she tells him they are afraid of his father (Yuri) because he is Solntsevskaya, or part of the Russian mob, not just a businessman, using a Tony Soprano reference.

Jake gets off the bus at W 132nd Street and Creston Avenue (an actual Bronx road) and winds up at the pawn shop. Martin notices the phone number is not the correct one Jake gave him–off by one number–5297 instead of 5296. When he dials, it is coming from above the store. Jake tries the door; it opens and he walks in, followed by Martin. He sees a letter addressed to Becca offering up apologies for mistakes “he” (her father) has made and reassures her that he loves her, with some of the words, “something has happened in my life”, “that our time here is precious”, and “I have left thinking…” and “forgive me” visible to the audience. Jake picks up a bat in the apartment that has the number 5296 on it. Martin sees a prescription for chlorambucil. (Chlorambucil is a chemotherapeutic medication used to treated chronic lymphocytic leukemia, non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma, and Hodgkin’s disease). A young man interrupts him.

The character who stole the baseball continues to try to sell it, but has no takers even at $10,000. He sees a picture on the wall about the catch he made, “Peanut Vendor Makes Lucky Catch.”

Becca and the man from India arrive at the stadium. However, the guard (Shane Blades) will not let them in. She encourages him that he did not fail as he had gotten this far, has gotten closure and not many people could say that. Becca says Lyov, the dog. When she runs to get him, he bolts and she chases him. Running in heels is never a fun thing to do.

The young man in the apartment returns with cash for Martin. Martin looks confused. The young man is going to hurt Martin, but Martin grabs the bat that Jake left near the couch (and Martin does see the number 5296). He scoops Jake up (which leads to Jake screaming) and carries him out to a cab. The driver (Tom Riordan) asks, “Where to” and Jake drops the prescription bottle on the seat. They are off to Victory Memorial Hospital. (Note: This is an actual hospital in Brooklyn that was noted for his delivering of babies that was closed. It sat just blocks from the Verrazano Bridge. They used to deliver a large number of babies of Italian and Irish descent, now it was more of Chinese and Russian descent).

Once at the hospital, Arnie happens to be in Room 5296, but not right now. Out the window, Martin and Jake see a hospital-gowned Arnie walking towards the bridge (it does not really look like the Verrazano Bridge to my memory).

The peanut vendor talks to Patrick McGrath, (Randall Batinkoff), the player whose ball he caught. McGrath mentions something about a “lawsuit” that allowed the peanut vendor to keep the ball. He shares a story that after he tried to sell his childhood dream (catching the ball), things in his life went from bad to worse. He just wanted to put things back right. He feels that in order to fix that karma, he needed to give the player his ball back. As the peanut vendor walks out, he leaves the door open for the man from India to go in. I’m sure the peanut vendor did not know he was to become part of a chain of events for this man either. The peanut vendor drives to where Yuri is waiting for him in a parking lot. Yuri realizes that he is going to have to beat him up for nonpayment. The peanut vendor reminds him that choices are cause and effect. Yuri gets a phone call from his son. He wonders if Pavel received the dog (Lyov) he sent him. Pavel confronts Yuri–does he not have friends because Yuri hurts people? He lies and tells Pavel no, and that “people change.” He will help his friends see that. Yuri turns to the peanut vendor and tells him he will give him his second chance.

Arnie stands on the side of the bridge looking down on traffic. (This definitely is not the Verrazano Bridge because that bridge goes over water). Martin tells him he knows everything–about his cancer, about the $10,000 he gave to the man to rob his store and kill him. Arnie does not know why Martin keeps “doing this to me.” Martin says he was meant to find him and help him. Arnie says he is dying. Martin says he does not know that as he has not even gone through the treatment yet. Arnie says he has no one who cares either way. Martin says he read the letter to Becca. His plan was to be able to leave her insurance money (if were killed in a robbery), but he could not even get that plan right. He plans to leave as he came in–alone. Martin says he’s there and he is not alone. Arnie, not convinced, prepares himself to jump as Martin rushes in and grabs him under the shoulders and pulls him over. Martin reassures him that he wants to be his friend and that he does care. A dog barks. It has to be Lyov (which will be followed by Becca). Martin is in further disbelief when he sees Becca.

An ending montage is played to the song by Alexi Murdoch, “Someday Soon.” (I love my father and I love him well…I hope to see my father soon…). The orange handprint being washed off the door. Arnie and Becca in the hospital room holding hands. The man from India spreading his father’s ashes at the pitcher’s mound and cries for the first time after his father’s death. Yuri arriving home on the plane to his son and wife. It becomes clear this was an episode mostly about fathers, including Martin and Jake. However, the montage then shows the girls from Japan. The peanut vendor is seen with a spring in his steps and burden lighter.

It closes with Martin saying, “There are so many things I wanted to teach you….” and goes into what he thought a father should do and be. “Now it turns out, you teaching me, and I want you to know I’m okay with that.” There is a hint of smile in Jake’s face for another thread healed in the world.

My thoughts about the episode: I’m enjoying the recurrent threads of the 318 numbers (which I’m not quite sure what it means yet although I keep looking). I’m curious where the threads will lead again with the girls from Japan. It was nice to see actors I have not seen in awhile: Amy Sloan whose work I had become familiar with on “Call Me Fitz”, Jude Ciccolella with his connections to Kiefer’s old show “24”, and Blake Shields who had been in “Sleeper Cell” and Tim Kring’s “Heroes.” That Jake feels cosmic pain does not surprise me. Oftentimes children with special needs have heightened senses. For example, my Patrick knows when there is someone around him who is uncomfortable with his behavior even though they do not speak a single word (and rarely does he). Tim Kring obviously takes that to the next level. My son, Patrick, is my life’s greatest teacher. He has taught me how to live in the moment, a rare gift in a crazy world. He has taught me patience. He has taught me the beauty of eye contact, the joy of shaking a head up and down or right to left to respond to a simple question, and so much more. My world is more about possibilities than absolutes. Whether Yuri will leave the mob is doubtful, but at least for that one man on that one day, Yuri gave someone he never gave before a second chance. The show’s theme that concentrated on mostly fathers seemed to be more about second chances for everyone.

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Tags: "Someday Soon", 24, 318, 318 East Fordham Road, 5296, 718 673 5296, 9/11, Alex Peters, Alexi Murdoch, Amy Sloan, Arnie Klepper, Arnie's Pawn Shop, Becca Klepper, Blake Shields, Call Me Fitz, Carol Barbee, cell phones, Chinese legend, circumstance, Clea Hopkins, Coastabella Music Festival, connected, cremation, Crossing Jordan, Daniel Polo, Danny Glover, daughters, David Mazouz, Dennis Hammer, destined lovers, dog, Eugene Alper, father, fathers, Fox Broadcasting, Fox VIP, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Hawaii-Five-O, Heroes, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, humanity, India, Izumi, Jake Bohm, Jericho, JFK airport, Jude Ciccobella, Karan Soni, Katherine Pope, Kiefer Sutherland, Los Angeles, Lyov, magic shop owner, Mark Ivanir, Martin Bohm, May Miyata, metaphysical, Miyoko, mutism, Neal Ahern Jr., New Girl, New York, orange soda, Parenthood, Patrick McGrath, Pavel Andreev, peanut vendor, Peter Chermin, place, Professor Arthur Dewitt, quantum entanglement, Randall Batinkoff, red thread of fate, Satomi Okuno, savant, Shane Blades, Sleeper Cell, sons, soulmates, stretch, tangle, Tatiana Chekhova, The Morticians, Three Rivers, Tim Kring, time, Tom Riordan, Touch, Yuri Andreev
Categories : Metaphysical, Touch

My “Touch” Moment

21 03 2012

By Hilda Clark Bowen

Coincidence. Fate. Is there truly a God that controls all things down to the microsecond of your life or just the big stuff? After all, if God exists, he/she gave us the free will to make choices. Those choices ripple out into consequences, good or bad. These are the questions we all ask ourselves and our answers may vary throughout our life as our own experiences shape our reality.

I had always felt it was fate that led me to find Jeff. It is difficult to put a starting point in this story. My father-in-law passed away in February 2012. For those of you who haven’t seen the new Fox series “Touch”, the experience made me instantly think of this show. It is loosely based on the red string of fate, a Chinese legend that said the gods tie an invisible red string around the ankles of those that are destined to be soul mates and will one day marry each other. The two people connected by the red thread are destined lovers, regardless of time, place, or circumstances. This magical cord may stretch or tangle, but never break, a concept very similar to soul mates. Tim Kring of the new TV show “Touch” expands that to include groups of individuals but still connected by love.

Red string of fate; unknown credit

I met Jeff on July 4, 1990, the last day of my vacation that began with my dear friend, Louise Rizzuto, getting married, on Long Island. I was a bridesmaid in her wedding. After the wedding, I traveled down to New Jersey to see my sister and my aunt. On that last night back on Long Island, my friend and now Patrick’s godmother, Patty, asked me to go out with her that evening. She wanted me to meet the best friend of her boyfriend, Larry. I almost did not get there. My foster brother stole my keys and would not give them back to me, and making me very late. Jeff told me he was about to leave. We met around the corner from where he lived in Setauket. We stayed at the restaurant for a few hours and then I told Jeff I would still love to sit by the water, as I had not had an opportunity to do that. He took me to a beach that apparently was frequented by drug dealers. When the police raided the beach, I was terrified I was going to jail for just sitting on the beach talking with him, so I ran. Jeff grabbed my purse and ran with me. After the police car stopped us and determined I truly was just some out-of-towner who did not realize the beach was closed, he let us go. Jeff found another place where we could talk out in public. I think I left about 4-5 a.m. and went back to where I was staying to pack and drive to the airport.

The rest of our relationship unfolded. He eventually moved down here in January of 1991 into his own apartment. We were engaged in July of 1991, but he wanted me to meet his family before making the announcement. We did that on August 11, 1991 the day after his cousin’s wedding. We were married in October 1992.

My friend Patty said that we were the best thing that came out of her relationship with Jeff’s best friend. Patty and Larry broke up shortly after that.

As we continued to find out about each other, I discovered that Jeff went to our rival high school, Ward Melville, and had often been to our school for sports. I was often at the school because in my sophomore year, I was president of my class. He lived right around the corner from SUNY Stony Brook, the college my sister attended, and where I often visited. That is important because around the corner from there was the Pancake Cottage, where my sister and I would have breakfast, as would Jeff and his family. It is possible that we were in the restaurant at the same time together and never knew it. Then we traced ourselves back even further. He remembers a classmate of his coming back from the Suffolk County LIBEC contest for typing in 1981, saying she was beat from someone from Patchogue (as if that was pond scum; we were a lower socioeconomic group than Ward Melville). Yep, that person was me.

Meanwhile in Setauket, Long Island, before we met, Jeff’s sister Deirdre was off at college in Massachusetts. She became roommates with Trish. Deirdre eventually married Frank. Trish married John.

Trish and John belonged to a very small church in New Jersey. They were very close to Jennifer. Jennifer and John were working on bringing a more contemporary service to their church. He knew Marilyn and Tony, Jennifer’s parents. He also knew Michelle and Gordon Dobson. One day Jennifer tells them she is moving to Texas to start a business to help this family out. Marilyn and Tony followed. They were very sad to see her go.

I had a miscarriage with my first baby (a boy, we named Matthew Joseph). Then Patrick was born, and he was later diagnosed with multiple disabilities including autism. In August 2010, I decided to pull him out of public school and try to get him into an autism school in the area. The place we found was Including Kids (InKids) run by Jennifer Dantzler.

On February 5, 2012, my father-in-law died. The wake would be Thursday of that next week and the funeral on Friday. We debated back and forth about who would go up there–just Jeff or would we try to attempt this trip as a family. Patrick’s behavior was much better since being at InKids, and we knew Jeff’s mom would love to see Patrick; she had not seen him in almost a decade (she could not fly down because of my father-in-law’s condition and we dared not even try before this time). The whole family would be happy to see him.

I was with Patrick in a lounge area at the funeral home when Jeff pops his head in and says, “You have to come over here; someone here knows Jennifer Dantzler.” I looked at him what a “what the hell” look. As we are walking, he tells me, “Deirdre’s roommate from college.” Then I thought the connection was that Jennifer also went to college in Massachusetts (not the same place, but maybe they knew each other from that area). While they were talking, Jeff stated that Patrick had autism and that he was going to a school for autism. Trish asked, “Do you know Jennifer Dantzler?” Jeff said, “She runs the school.” There are many schools for autism here in throughout Houston and the surrounding areas. As we talked to these people, my mind was connecting all the dots. Jennifer Dantzler is the executive director of Including Kids (InKids), the place where Patrick goes to school.

We talked about this huge coincidence for almost 30 minutes or more. John told me he remembered clearly when Jennifer said she was moving down to Texas. They were all shocked. I said, “The woman is fearless.” He agreed that was a good word for her. He said they had lost touch with each other in the last 4 years. At that very moment, I wanted to place a call to InKids, but it was late at night and no one would be there. We also discovered that while they were at this church, the Dobson’s offered up a French meal for 10-12 as a church raffle. Michelle is a French chef. It is something they offer similarly here for our Boots and Bling Gala, which is coming up on April 14, 2012. Trish said, “We invited Deirdre and Frank to that.” The Dobson’s are now on the board of directors for the school and also live down here. Tony and Marilyn routinely are the ones to serve the food to people at these type events, so Deirdre and Frank likely saw them at that dinner without ever knowing they were to become part of our lives, too, at a future date. John said Jennifer, Marilyn and Tony had been on his mind for the last 2 weeks. We shared with Trish and John that if it were not for Jennifer and her staff, Patrick would not be here making that long journey from Texas to New Jersey. We shared with them all the progress Patrick has been able to make since going to InKids. The next day at Deirdre’s house, I told Deirdre about the connections. They also took her by surprise.

Upon returning home, I was eager to run in and tell Jennifer, but I was too late. They had already contacted them. Marilyn said the email started, “I don’t believe in coincidences…” The email made her cry. Marilyn shared with me that 2 weeks ago, Trish and John were on her mind, too. Apparently, Marilyn/Jennifer and Trish/John had lost contact with each other for at least the past 4 years. Trish and John went on to make a monetary donation to Including Kids in honor of Patrick and in memory of Patrick’s grandfather. Best of all, they were back in contact with each other.

The mathematical probability of this happening is unlikely, but there it was–my “Touch” moment. There was a string that connected all our lives and it took this particularly sad event of my father-in-law’s passing for all the pieces to be revealed.

Have you ever had moments such as these? Please feel free to share in the comment section.

UPDATE FEB 2013

Trish and John subsequently made donations to my son’s school for autism, Including Kids. In January, their son came down to see if a particular career path was right for him or not. Where was he? At Patrick’s school. He had been down for 3 weeks and one day I went in to volunteer and we met. This was almost a full year after my father-in-law passed away. If he does decide to move here, we may also have some part-time work he can do directly with Patrick at home. The connections continue.

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Tags: autism, Carol Barbee, cell phones, Chinese legend, circumstance, Clea Hopkins, connected, Crossing Jordan, Danny Glover, David Mazouz, Dennis Hammer, destined lovers, fate. coincidence, Fox Broadcasting, Fox VIP, funeral, God. Including Kids, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Heroes, Hilda Clark, Hilda Clark Bowen, humanity, InKids, Jake Bohm, Karen David, Katherine Pope, Kiefer Sutherland, Martin Bohm, metaphysical, mutism, Neal Ahern Jr., New Girl, New York, Parenthood, PBMom, Peter Chermin, Professor Arthur Dewitt, red thread of fate, soulmates, stretch, tangle, Tim Kring, time, Touch
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