Dexter - S6 E5 - The Angel of Death

Dexter is quick to finger Travis Marshall for the "Doomsday Killings" but the rest of the department is caught up tracing the mysterious Professor Gellar. Deb is forced to admit that she is overloaded with problems.

Spoilers after the jump.

NFL Picks Week Eight sponsored by Studio Yukupo

When are people going to stop going on and on and on about the "Suck for Luck" campaign? Besides the obvious, which is that there is no NFL professional actively trying to lose, I seem to remember that a similar thing happened last year. Everyone just assumed that it was a straight fight between the Bills and the Panthers for Andrew Luck, but instead he stayed in school. Well as it turns out, he's still only a junior. It seems a lot more likely that he will actually enter the draft next year, but can you really be certain? What if he doesn't? Then what do you do? Lose out again for another year?

Then we have to ask the question none of the talking bobbleheads will - are you sure he's as good as everyone claims? What if he's average? What if he's Eli Manning? What if he's just not that good? If as an owner/GM combo you are cutting your roster to make it weak, where is the foundation that a young QB will need? Andrew Luck himself thinks "Suck for Luck" is pretty much the stupidest thing he's ever heard. I couldn't agree more and wish everyone would stop bandying it about as though it were a real thing.

Picks after the jump.

NCAA College Football Picks Week 9

To everyone rooting for "BCS CHAOS OMG", sorry but it's not going to happen, at least not like they would hope. Two unbeatens went down last week to cut the number down to 8. Kansas State is going to lose to one if not both of the Oklahomas and Oklahoma State will lose to Oklahoma because they always lose to Oklahoma.

Clemson will Clemson themselves sooner or later, it's simply in their DNA. One of LSU or Alabama will be eliminated next week in a de facto playoff game, for all the people who don't understand why the college football regular season is awesome, games like the one next week are why. Houston hasn't played anyone. Boise State haven't played anyone. Utah is 0-4 in the Pac-12. Playing AQ opposition every week does make a big difference. If Stanford can clear USC, Notre Dame and Oregon, the latter two both at home, they will deserve to play the SEC Champion for all the jellybeans.

Picks after the jump.

Person of Interest - S1 E6 - The Fix

Reese must protect an attractive professional fixer after a deal of hers goes awry.

Review, minor spoilers after the jump.

Community - S3 E5 - Horror Fiction in Seven Spooky Steps

After Britta processes the groups anonymous psych tests and determines that one of them is a sociopath, she and Jeff sit everyone down to tell scary stories to root them out.

Spoilers after the jump.

Gossip Girl - S5 E5 - The Fasting and the Furious

Serena pursues the movie rights for Dan's novel. Chuck pursues mature game while Nate and Charlie go snooping around looking for juicy gossip. Back at the Waldorfs, Blair and Louis announce her pregnancy to their parents.

Spoilers after the jump.

2 Broke Girls - S1 E6 - And the Disappearing Bed

Caroline wants to install a Murphy bed in the apartment and encourages Max to get out there and promote the start-up company more to provide funds.

Spoilers after the jump.

How I Met Your Mother - S7 E7 - Noretta

Kevin theorizes that people tend to seek out partners similar to their parents leading to awkward experiences for some of the gang. Meanwhile, Ted receives attention from Robin.

Spoilers after the jump.

Dexter - S6 E4 - A Horse of a Different Color

Dexter considers turning to faith when Harrison falls gravely ill. Miami Metro begins uncovering the mechanism behind the grisly murders, dubbing their perpetrator the "Doomsday Killer"

Some spoilers after the jump.

NFL Picks Week Seven sponsored by Studio Yukupo

I'm 100% sure there's only one question on everyones minds this week - If all the NFL head coaches got together and had a fight club, who would win?? You don't have to live in suspense - I have the answers! I've ranked every coach tier by tier. Read on...

These guys probably dish out a fairly limp handshake - Jim Caldwell, Pat Shurmur (Who??), Rex Ryan (Obviously overcompensating), Andy Reid (too many corndogs), Todd Haley, Norv Turner (His voice still hasn't broken), Sean Payton (He's on IR), Chan Gailey (He's like, 90 yrs old fer chrissakes), Mike McCarthy (another overcompensator)

These fellas may have some skills, but just don't look intimidating enough - Leslie Frazier, Gary Kubiak, John Fox (loses points for being afraid of Tim Tebow), Pete Carroll (Great hustle, but far too wispy), Mike Smith (Looks immobile), Ron Rivera (When did he start wearing glasses? Totally ruins his look), Lovie Smith (Too calm, and not in the scary way)

More and picks after the jump.

NCAA College Football Picks Week 8

We've seen a cluster of teams lately that were by turns terrible or incredibly mediocre send 1st Round Quarterbacks to the NFL and have a turnaround in fortunes - in a positive direction. Wshington had Jake Locker through their darkest times and are now 5-1. Josh Freeman came out of Kansas State in the Ron Prince era and now they're undefeated. Vanderbilt made a bowl game for the first time in half a century after Jay Cutler left.

The news that Indiana may be about to lose 5-star recruit Gunner Kiel is a huge blow, not jsut for their immediate future, but their long term prospects - much like a poor family grooms their kid to be a star hoping they'll make it big, he could've eventually been their meal ticket out of the Big Ten basement. The reason is fairly obvious - a high profile Quarterback makes you more visible to high school students, and encourages them to believe they could make it into the draft out of your school too.

Who could be the next team to turn around their fortunes on the back of a high-level QB? Probably not Arizona who were good but are now in turmoil with a change at coach. Nick Foles probably isn't quite a first round talent to boot. Baylor, with Robert Griffin III is a good candidate. Art Briles is entrenched as head coach, and with Texas A&M set to leave for the SEC they could steal a march in the Big 12 and leapfrog over Texas Tech and TCU in the Texas recruting sweepstakes. The best candidate though is Tennessee. They have fallen on hard times lately but they're a traditional power and Tyler Bray is a star in the making. Assuming he returns from his injury fully healthy and can turn out two Heisman level years, they will have recruits beating down the door to get in.

Picks after the jump.

Person of Interest - S1 E5 - Judgement

Reese and Finch uncover a vast conspiracy while working the case of a kidnapped judge's son.

Review after the jump.

Up All Night - S1 E6 - Birth

A flashback to a baby-less time as Reagan and Chris prepare for the birth of their daughter and Chris must decide how to deal with his job.

Review after the jump.

Ringer - S1 E6 - The Poor Kids Do It Every Day

Henry and Shivette clash over the disappearance of Gemma. Juliet has trouble on her first day in public school. Machado is hot on the trail of Malcolm.

Spoilers after the jump.

House, M.D. - S8 E3 - Charity Case

A man collapses after making an extraodinarily generous donation to a charitable cause and House endeavors to either secure a donation for himself or prove that the altruism is a symptom of disease. To this end, he seeks the aid of some old friends.

Spoilers after the jump.

Gossip Girl - S5 E4 - Memoirs of an Invisible Dan

Dan prepares for the launch of his novel but his friends are unprepared for his havoc his literature will wreak upon their lives. Ivy tracks down her phone but retrieving it comes at a cost.

Spoilers after the jump.

2 Broke Girls - S1 E5 - And the '90s Horse Party

Caroline comes up with a scheme to help Max pay off her student loan debt but panics when someone from her past shows up at the diner.

Spoilers after the jump.

How I Met Your Mother - S7 E6 - Mystery vs. History

Ted has a date with a girl but is determined not to Google (or Goggle as Walter Kenney would say) her first. Marshall and lily are desperate to avoid knowing the gender of their baby while Kevin is perturbed by the group dynamic.

Spoilers after the jump.

Dexter - S6 E3 - Smokey and the Bandit

Dexter trails the legendary Tooth Fairy Killer. Deb experiences growing pains in her new role as lieutenant.

Spoilers after the jump.

NFL Picks Week Six sponsored by Studio Yukupo

I was going to talk about the Hotplate league this week but am blowing it out because of, as Brandon Lloyd put it, "the Tebow thing". By now everyone knows that Tebow came in last week and played like a Boss, falling an uncalled pass interference penalty short of leading a sensational comeback against the Chargers.

Yet still there are doubters. Still there are people who can do nothing but hate. There are people out there who proudly proclaim that Denver should trade Tebow now because he'll never amount to anything, but are at the same time "THIS IS THE WEEK DONOVAN MCNABB TURNS IT AROUND!" I've mainly attributed it to jealousy in the past; Mediocre players who never achieved the same level of adoration who in turn lead around pundits all too eager to continue kicking up to their inside lead.

ESPN, in their usual pompous manner invented a new system for rating Quarterbacks in the off-season, their reasoning being that the existing technique was too flawed. They named it QBR and one of the guys who helped develop it was Trent Dilfer, a guy everyone out there knows is one of the most biased 'experts' in the business, giving preference to players he has coached or has other personal relationships with and going out of his way to trash guys like Jay Cutler who have a feud with one of his friends. Guess who, in the limited amount amount of playtime he has had is beating one of Dilfer's favorite pets Aaron Rodgers in the QBR ratings? What a conundrum for them - admit Tebow might turn out ok, or admit their system is just as useless as almost every other statistic out there?

In the end, it looks like the numbers guys are going to take QBR back to the garage and tweak it so it favors certain guys even more. Hopefully, people will understand that it's ultimately meaningless; the best way to judge the performance of a player is with your own eyes, and so far that's a battle Tebow is winning.

Picks after the jump.

NCAA College Football Picks Week 7

As we approach the midway point, it's time for a national title contender review! This time, we'll only look at the remaining unbeaten teams.

LSU & Alabama: At this point it looks fairly certain that one of these teams is going to end up unbeaten at the end of the year. Though they may not be overpowering offensively, I just don't see any team on their schedule outscoring them. LSU is ranked #1 but like most people I'd have to give the edge to Alabama based on recent history. And by recent history, yes, I mean Les Miles.

Oklahoma: The Sooners will probably be lining up opposite the SEC in the title game. They're not in the same class as that Sam Bradford team but I don't see any team on their schedule stopping them, especially having witnessed their evisceration of Texas last week.

Oklahoma State & Kansas State: Kansas State has about as much chance of remaining unbeaten as I have of scoring with Blake Lively. It's a nice story, one I might be inclined to expand on next week, but they have yet to play the Sooners or OK State who themselves I envision winning all their remaining games except for Bedlam where they'll get bludgeoned right in the cowpoke hat with a wood axe.

Clemson vs Georgia Tech: These teams will probably have to play each other twice - once during the regular season and once in the conference title game. I think they will knock each other out over the course of those games but frankly I don't see either one of them lasting out the ACC schedule in any case; these teams always have at least one embarassing performance in them. I would give the edge to Georgia Tech however - absolutely nobody is talking about them.

More & picks after the jump.

Person of Interest - S1 E4 - Cura Te Ipsum

Reese tails a young doctor who he thinks is being stalked, but gets caught up with the problems of his mole Detective Fusco as well.

Review after the jump, minor spoilers.

Community - S7 E4 - Remedial Chaos Theory

Troy and Abed invite the group to their new apartment for a housewarming, resulting in a a slew of alternate realities.

Spoilers after the jump.

Up All Night - S1 E5 - Mr. Bob's Toddler Kaleidoscope

Chris enrolls Amy in a stimulating playgroup but Reagan has trouble juggling attendance of that with her job and Ava.

Review after the jump.

Ringer - S1 E5 - A Whole New Kind of Bitch

Shivette and Gemma clash over Gemma's newfound knowledge. Andrew's daughter Juliet is proving to be extremely problematic.

Spoilers after the jump.

House, M.D. - S8 E2 - Transplant

House secures his release from jail thanks to new Dean of Medicine Foreman, just in time to try and save a pair of lungs destined for a patient of Wilson's.

Spoilers after the jump.

Gossip Girl - S5 E3 - The Jewel of Denial

Blair has the results of the paternity test but refuses to look at them. Dan tries to help her but also has a problem of his own to deal with. Charlie/Ivy touches down in NYC but has to face up to the family.

Spoilers after the jump.

2 Broke Girls - S1 E4 - And the Rich People Problems

Caroline needs a bite guard (?) for her teeth and the only palatable place to retrieve one is her former apartment.

Spoilers after the jump.

How I Met Your Mother - S7 E5 - Field Trip

Ted takes his new students on a NYC field trip to spark their interest in archaeology architecture. Robin discovers a mutual attraction with her therapist.

Spoilers after the jump.

Dexter - S6 E2 - Once Upon a Time

Dexter investigates an ex-convict who claims to have reformed due to his faith. Deb receives two unexpected propositions of very different natures..

Spoilers after the jump.

NFL Picks Week Five sponsored by Studio Yukupo

Quarter Mark Power Poll
This is a list based on who I think is better, regardless of record - although Bill Parcells did say of course, "You are what your record says you are."

1. Green Bay Packers
2. New Orleans Saints
3. Baltimore Ravens
4. New England Patriots

That feels like a no-brainer top 4. You have to beat the champs to take their title and so far, unfortunately, no one has.

5. San Diego Chargers
6. Detroit Lions
7. Houston Texans
8. Dallas Cowboys

Dallas has a worse record than two other teams in their division but snatched defeat from the jaws of victory in both losses. I think the Texans will come crashing back down before long but for now they have to be given their due.

9. Tampa Bay Buccaneers
10. Washington Redskins
11. San Franciso 49ers
12. Tennessee Titans

These teams might lack something critical upon first glance but I think they could stand toe-to-toe with any teams in the top 8 and live to tell the tale. They all could be in prime position to move up as well.

More and picks after the jump.

NCAA College Football Picks Week 6

After Texas A&M's second straight catastrophic second half collapse confirmed them as the Minnesota Vikings of the FBS last week, I got to wondering about their running back, I young man named Christine Michael. What kind of parent names their son Christine? What is it a mistake? An accident? What kind of crap has he had to take over the years? Is having to deal it what's made him a tough football player? You often see a wide variety of chaps with very strange names on the field on Saturdays, such as Jadaveon, Jermauria, T-Bob, and my personal favorite, HaHa (short for "Ha'Sean", naturally) but msot of them are, well, of a particular heritage that the average fan probably isn't too well versed in so maybe we should jsut leave it at that. Yeah.

Picks after the jump.

Person of Interest - S1 E3 - Mission Creep

Reese tails an ex-soldier involved a heist gang.

Review after the jump.

Community - S1 E3 - Competitive Ecology

Mr. Omar forces his class into pairs for thei biology class leading to internal strife in the group.

Spoilers after the jump.

Up All Night - S1 E4 - New Car

Reagan and Chris go car hunting to replace her impractical convertible. Ava seeks a more serious tone for her show but struggles with the consequences of that.

Paragraphs after the jump.

Ringer - S1 E4 - It's Gonna Kill Me, But I'll Do It

Andrew, Shivette, Gemma and Henry head for the Hamptons to celebrate Shivette's birthday. Agent Machado picks up Bridget's scent.

Spoilers after the jump.

Glee - S3 E3 - Asian F

Mike comes under pressure from his father after a minor slip in his grades. Mercedes feels unappreciated and Will demands to see Emma's parents.

Spoilers after the jump.

House, M.D. - S8 E1 - Twenty Vicodin

House is nearing the end of his jail term after crashing his car into Cuddy's house when his diagnostic juices are set flowing once more.

Spoilers after the jump.

Gossip Girl - S5 E2 - Beauty and the Feast

Blair struggles to keep her pregnancy secret as Louis's sister Beatrice comes to visit. Charlie, a.k.a. Ivy is finding it tough to shake Serena off her tail. Nate goes cougar hunting and it's completely disturbing.

Spoilers after the jump.

2 Broke Girls -S1 E2 - And Strokes of Goodwill

Max and Caroline go shopping for new clothes at the Goodwill store.

Spoilers after the jump.

How I Met Your Mother - S7 E4 - The Stinson Missile Crisis

Robin is in court mandated psychotherapy after assaulting another woman while helping Barney clean house. Ted is determined to remain close to Marshall and Lily as the pregnancy develops.

Spoilers after the jump.

Dexter - S6 E1 - Those Kinds of Things

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NFL Picks Week Four sponsored by Studio Yukupo

Another terrible week of picks has me thinking maybe I should start picking all teams I hate in order to jinx them. On the upside, the Raiders, Bills and Seahawks all won - people claim the Seahawks should throw games to assure themselves of picking Andrew Luck which is an assinine suggestion on so many levels - It is a rather scary thought that the Colts, by virtue of pure ineptitude could get that pick right at the tail end of Peyton's career. Let's hope it's not them or some other team liberally littered with obnoxious douchenozzles like Bob Irsay.

Picks after the jump.

NCAA College Football Picks Week 5

No big surprises yet in the land of College Football but there are a few overhyped teams. Chief among them of course is Oklahoma State, a team I have no doubt will do very well... until it comes time for Bedlam at which they will, as always get slapped around by the Sooners like... well, there's no politically correct analogy, but you get the point. The other is Clemson who despite back to back wins as home favorites over theoretically superior teams, I still don't trust. How can one when their history is so littered with disaster?

Picks after the jump.