More Dollhouse, plus Kelly Clarkson and Lauren Jackson

So, the second episode of "Dollhouse" was so much better than the pilot that it was almost impossible for me to believe that both episodes were part of the same show.

Also, the reference to "The Most Dangerous Game" was great. I'll have to mention it to my students on Monday. I didn't actually pay attention to whether or not they mentioned the guy's full name at the beginning of the episode, but I definitely caught it at the end. Big ups to Joss and Co. for naming him "Richard Connell" and not "Zaroff" or something way too obvious.

While watching Echo run for her life, my dad kept saying, "Where's Buffy when you need her?" My response was, "You wouldn't even need Buffy if the idiots at the Dollhouse had imprinted her with some combat skills."

I fell asleep during "The Sarah Connor Chronicles." My dad, of all people, had to tell me what happened. In other news, my Dish Network guide now lists the show as "Connor Chronicles." I think that's actually quite appropriate, seeing as how Sarah Connor's chronicles are usually overshadowed by her annoying son and the singer (Shirley Manson) I used to like before she joined the show.

In other news, I'm going to see Kelly Clarkson in September. I know someone who knows someone who can get really good tickets, so I'm still waiting to see where the seats are. This is like the official Best Year of Concerts. Other than the fact that Brandi Carlile and Missy Higgins are nowhere to be found. Except Philly, of course. And a cruise ship. With Shawn Colvin. Which, quite frankly, wouldn't be too bad, seeing as how I never got to see her at Lilith Fair. Holy fragments, Batman!

Yolanda Griffith just signed with Indiana. But the Storm just re-signed JB, who sat out last year, and Suzy Batkovic, who hasn't played in the W since about 2005 or so. Fantastic. Really.

So, as I was sitting there thinking, "Well, at least Batkovic and LJ are both Aussies," I happened to read that LJ may not come back to the Storm. So much for Seattle being the only U.S. city that reminds her of home. She may play for the Mercury, which would actually be quite humorous, seeing as how I'm going to the Mercury at Liberty game this summer. I suppose I could wear my LJ home jersey and dream of better days.

Michelle Snow was picked up by the Dream, who recently let go of Betty Lennox. Yeah, that sounds like a great decision. I would have liked to have been a fly on the wall at some of those meetings. "Well, if we get rid of the only player on the team who can actually score, we can maybe pick up a post player who's been spotty at best for the past two seasons. Yeah! Let's do it!"

Is the Holdsclaw trainwreck really going to happen this season? I haven't heard anything about it recently. I think Atlanta plays the Lib on a Saturday or Sunday, so I could probably go to the game. And I would get tickets behind the Atlanta bench, just to see it all unfold.

I probably sound ultra-snarky today, but it's with good reason. A major stomach flu has been tearing through the school for the past week, and a bunch of students and teachers have been sick. And when I woke up this morning, I felt horrible. This would so be the worst week for me to miss a day, so I'm kind of irritated.

Plus, I really didn't get any work done today. And right now I really don't care.

Dollhouse

So, I know this is a music/sports blog and everything, but I feel the need to say something about the premiere of "Dollhouse."

The only problem is that I really don't know what to say. There was way too much going on, and I was completely lost by the first commercial break.

I love Amy Acker, but Joss really needs to stop mixing Buffy/Angel/Firefly people. Thank God Summer Glau and Nathan Fillion are on other shows right now. I half expected Amber Benson or James Marsters to come popping out from behind a door and yell, "Boo!" It's like when I saw Caroline Dhavernas fans talking about how she should guest star on "Pushing Daisies." And I thought, "Are you serious? That would just be weird." So, when Diana Scarwid freaking appeared on the show, I just sat there, shook my head, and said, "Well, Tracie is on 'Cold Case,' so this can't get any weirder."

I love my shows, don't get me wrong. But when they end, the cast should go their separate ways. Expand their horizons. Stay away from FOX.

I give both "Dollhouse" and "Terminator: The Sarah Connor Chronicles" four weeks. And I'm going to say that "Dollhouse" will switch its episode order by about the third episode, just like "Wonderfalls" and "Firefly" did before they were cancelled.

I think Joss is great. I think Eliza is great.

But FOX? Really? After they've both been screwed by it.

Look at it this way. I have absolutely no social life, but I still had a hard time getting into "Dollhouse." That's not good.

Jewel

So, the Jewel concert was on Wednesday night. We had snow on Tuesday night, and my mom didn't want to drive. Now, my dad and I get along much better now than we did a decade ago, so I didn't have a problem with him going in her place.

We ate dinner at Cracker Barrel and then headed to the theater. The concert was scheduled for 8, so we stood around for a while. I bought a t-shirt and a poster. At about 7:30, we went to our seats, which were freaking amazing. They were nine rows back, straight across from the microphone stand.

At 8, some guy from the theater came out to tell us that the original opening act had cancelled, and that they had booked another act. So, I'm thinking, "Great. It's probably some local band that sounds like crap." He went on to say that this "woman" is a "songwriter" who has toured with a bunch of people I actually listen to.

Toby Lightman. Freaking Toby Lightman. The same Toby Lightman who made her way into my world about five years ago, before being trampled by the Pussycat Dolls, Jessica Simpson, and a variety of other talentless bimbos. So, as I'm thinking, "Where in the hell has she been all this time?" she makes her way onto the stage. I was freaking out because I actually know who she is, and my dad was completely oblivious. She started playing songs from her brand new album, which I immediately decided I needed to buy, and she was adorable. She played a few slow songs, before breaking into "Let Go." The audience went crazy, so she was like, "Um...I'm not usually this angry. You guys just seemed so quiet and everything. Do you want to hear another angry song?" We screamed, "Yes!" so she played "I'm Gonna Break His Heart," and we all clapped along to the beat.

At the end of her set, she said that she wanted to meet all of us, so I rushed out to the lobby and snatched up a copy of "Let Go." I got her to sign it (it was a madhouse, so she wasn't taking pictures with people) and told her that I had bought "Little Things" five years ago and was so glad that she was still making music. She smiled and thanked me profusely. I think I'm getting better at meeting celebrities. I can actually form whole sentences now.

So, Jewel eventually made her way onto the stage at 8:50, as I'm sitting there thinking, "I have to type two tests by tomorrow morning." She started off with an a cappella version of "Somewhere Over the Rainbow" that was better than Kat McPhee's. Then, she proceeded to play a bunch of her songs, in a sort of reverse chronological order. She started with a bunch of "Perfectly Clear" songs, basically skipped "Goodbye Alice in Wonderland" (a shame) and "0304" (a gift), and then went into "Spirit" and "Pieces of You." A few songs, such as "Life Uncommon" were sort of thrown in the middle, possibly to make it less obvious that she was leading up to "You Were Meant For Me" and all that jazz. I personally didn't care, as "Life Uncommon" is one of my favorite songs, and I almost pissed my pants when I heard it.

About thirty seconds into "Stephenville, TX," she completely forgot the lyrics and had to ask two audience members, who happened to be sitting in row 8, just a few seats to my right, what they were. After they helped her out, she started over and managed to make it the whole way through. I personally don't blame her for messing up because the verses to that song have, like, no melody. It's a great song, but it has a weird structure. After the song was over, she asked the two girls if they would like to request a song that she "knows the words to." They requested "Nicotine Love," which I've never heard and which Jewel didn't remember. So, they tried again. "Passing Time" was a song that Jewel was pretty sure she could play. Before playing it, she casually mentioned that she'd been practicing "Goodbye Alice in Wonderland," and asked if anyone wanted to hear it instead. Applause was heard from myself and one other person. Go figure.

The concert ended at about 10:45 or so. All in all, I have to say that it was freaking amazing. As I sat there, I couldn't help but think, "I've been waiting over twelve years for this." I remember buying "Pieces of You." I didn't yet have a CD player, so I bought it on cassette. In sixth grade, I decided to sit and read her poems instead of playing in the lame teachers versus students softball game, and the PTO moms acted like I was reading something scandalous.

Little Big Town and LeAnn Rimes are both coming to AMT in May. I'm going to buy a theater membership so I can buy advance tickets.

Missy Higgins and Brandi Carlile are still not playing near my hometown, which sucks. AMT tends to attract stars who either used to be really, really famous (like Jewel) or people who are sort of up and coming (like Little Big Town). Maybe Sarah McLachlan will tour again soon. That would be amazing.