Tuesday, March 31, 2009

Purge: Rehab Diaries Is Painful But Powerful

I've been doing a fair amount of reading lately, with most of my book selections falling under the umbrella of young adult literature, often with a fairy tale-like element. My most recent choice, Purge: Rehab Diaries, certainly doesn't delve into fantastical realms, nor would it likely be classified as Young Adult, though it might well be of value to many teenagers who are struggling with eating disorders. In this frank memoir, Nicole Johns chronicles her experience at a treatment facility where she spent three months during the summer of 2004.

Purge doesn't shy away from the grittiness of a battle with an eating disorder; there are graphic descriptions of the physical and emotional effects, both from her direct experience and her observations of the young women who became her friends during her stay. Augmenting her own recollections are documents from the facility with matter-of-fact statements about her condition and treatment, but it's her own voice that is so compelling. Sometimes sarcastic, sometimes despairing, sometimes warmly basking in those things that make her battle to beat her disease worth it, she writes with wit, honesty and a beauty that cuts through the brutality.

Johns, who was a graduate student at the time, checked into rehab with an Eating Disorder Not Otherwise Specified, which includes symptoms of both anorexia and bulimia. Over the course of about 270 pages and 70 chapters, she describes the ins and outs of the treatment facility, the counselors and her fellow residents, while occasionally reaching further back into her past to discuss formative parts of her life. Some were positive, like her wonderful relationship with her Italian grandparents, while others, particularly a painful experience with a college professor, were destructive. Because the chapters are short and Johns' style is so accessible, the book doesn't take long to read; once I started it, I was engrossed enough that I got through it in a single sitting of several hours.

It's interesting to see Johns' perspective evolve over the course of the book as she recalls becoming more comfortable with her body image and less disdainful of the efforts of the staff to keep her eating behavior in check. Even during the depths of her own struggle, her compassion for others in similar condition is evident, and one of the most powerful portions of the book deals with her trying to encourage a fellow rehab resident after they leave the program and find it difficult to resist relapsing into old habits.

Purge: Rehab Diaries is a harsh memoir, but Johns herself is a testament to the value of hope and perseverance. She notes in the prologue that the urges that accompany most eating disorders may not ever dissipate entirely, but reading about her determined efforts to reclaim her life is a step in the right direction for the many who are currently floundering.

Friday, March 27, 2009

There's a Lot to Love in Season Two of Ballykissangel

Last week, I discovered the delightful BBC program Ballykissangel, which ran for six seasons, starting in the mid-90s. I also discovered that the first three seasons were available on Netflix Instant Viewing, but only for the rest of March, perhaps in honor of St. Patrick's Day, since the show is set in Ireland. So while I think I'll have to rent the separate DVDs for season three, I managed to cram the first two seasons into two weeks. Season two is slightly longer than season one, with eight 50-minute-long episodes instead of six, and pretty similar in terms of tone and characters.

Season one ends on what feels like a cliff-hanger, as Father Peter Clifford (Stephen Thompkinson), who's been the curate at St. Joseph's, the Catholic parish in Ballykissangel, for a few months, receives word that he's being transferred back to his hometown of Manchester. Feisty agnostic pub owner Assumpta Fitzgerald (Dervla Kirwan) presents him with a petition from dozens of townspeople protesting his removal; Father Clifford is touched but pointedly asks, in a manner evoking Captain Von Trapp in The Sound of Music, "You said they all wanted me to stay. What about you?"

Well, apparently the petition worked, because Father Clifford is still around in the season two premiere, and his transfer is never mentioned again. But the romantic tension between Assumpta and Peter continues as he discovers a script written by pub regulars Brendan (Gary Whelan) and Padraig (Peter Caffrey) and launches a production, with her as the star. When circumstances require him to step in for another actor as her love interest, stern Father Macanally (Niall Toibin) suspects that the stage chemistry he witnesses in rehearsals is a little too authentic, forcing Father Clifford to carefully evaluate his true feelings.

It's as though all of season one was building up to this moment, while season two gradually moves away from it as the young priest tries to remain a friend to Assumpta while creating a bit more distance between them. Meanwhile, she must deal with the mostly unwanted attentions of washed-up folk singer Enda Sullivan (Stephen Brennan), who has recently settled in town, and the lack of employees to help run her ever-popular pub.

Newlyweds Niamh (Tina Kellegher) and Ambrose Egan (Peter Hanly) face some rocky times as they try to start a family and settle into new routines. Ambrose continues to prove his mettle as Ballykissangel's lone cop, while Niamh finds a new calling laying down the law for a gang of young hooligans from another town who recently started attending the local school, where Brendan, normally an incredibly capable teacher, finds himself overrun.

Brendan is one of the characters we get to know quite a bit better this season. Others are Eamonn (Birdy Sweeney), an elderly farmer who is especially devoted to his livestock, and Dr. Ryan (Bosco Hogan), who comes to the forefront as the Egans await news of a baby. Brian Quigley (Tony Doyle), much like Buddy Garrity on Friday Night Lights, becomes more sympathetic as we see that being the richest man in town comes with a host of unique problems. Stuffy shop owner Kathleen (Aine Ni Mhuiri) gets a taste of riches herself when everyone in town bands together to help her bounce back from a house fire, with veterinarian Siobhan (Deirdre Donnelly) leading the fundraising charge.

This season is slightly less centered on Father Clifford than the first, but he's still very involved in the activities of his community and battling moral crises at every turn. Should he act on a dog-racing tip given to him in the confessional, knowing the winnings will help a needy parishioner? How can he draw more people to Mass on Sunday without compromising the integrity of the service? Is there any way of pounding a little sense into the twitterpated teens in town without offending Father Macanally by discussing indelicate subjects? And what's to be done when dunderheads Liam (Joe Savino) and Donal (Frankie McCafferty) appropriate a statue of Mary to attract people to their gold-panning tourist trap on the shores of the river?

A host of colorful characters with entrancing accents, beautiful scenery, a lively score and engaging plots that tackle heavy issues but provide plenty of comical twists. That's what you get with Ballykissangel. Interestingly, I see that the third season is twice as long as the first, so a change of pace awaits, for better or worse - but I find it hard to imagine anything bad could come of having that much more time to spend with the residents of this enchanting town.

Ballykissangel's First Season Introduces Colorful Irish Townsfolk and One Very Lovable English Priest

I was browsing through Netflix last week, looking for something to watch on Instant Viewing, since I was between DVDs at the time. I was hoping for something Irish in honor of St. Patrick's Day but wasn't really expecting to find much, so I was delighted to strike gold when I stumbled upon the series Ballykissangel. This BBC Northern Ireland series created by Kieran Prendiville is set in the sleepy Irish town of the title. Like Mitford, Mayberry or James Herriot's Darrowby, Ballykissangel is an idyllic village where everyone knows each other and both laughter and troubles are always in large supply.

The first season, or "series" as the BBC calls it, consists of six 50-minute-long episodes and begins with the arrival of Father Peter Clifford (Stephen Thompkinson), a progressive young priest from Manchester. The first person he meets is Assumpta Fitzgerald (Dervla Kirwan), a tart-tongued pub owner determined not to live up to her oh-so-Catholic name. She takes every opportunity to demonstrate her disdain for the Church, but she can't help liking Father Clifford, who is everything Ballykissangel's stodgy elder priest, Father MacAnally (Niall Toibin), isn't: self-effacing, liberal, forgiving... not to mention handsome, in an endearing boy-next-door sort of way. He enjoys sparring with her, and the romantic tension that blooms mere minutes into the pilot escalates throughout the season, though Father Clifford is the very picture of propriety.

Gangly police officer Ambrose Egan (Peter Hanly) is not so over-the-top as Don Knotts' Barney Fief, but in a town where very little crime occurs, he's always on the lookout for improper behavior. In uniform, he's overzealous in his duties, but without that authority, he's rather gutless and rarely stands up to his girlfriend Niamh (Tina Kellegher), the fiery daughter of Brian Quigley (Tony Doyle), a businessman who would like to think he owns the town. While Brian, with some help from bumbling lackeys Liam (Joe Sovino) and Donal (Frankie McCafferty), cooks up self-aggrandizing schemes like installing an electronic confessional in the church and advertising on a covert radio station, Ambrose and Niamh try to negotiate their way toward marriage. This is complicated by Niamh's desire to co-habitate first and a brush with death that leaves Ambrose considering the priesthood.

Local folks filter in and out of the episodes and generally come to rest at Assumpta's pub at some point. One of her most frequent guests is eccentric veterinarian Siobhan (Deirdre Donnelly), who doles out tips on horse races and protests the use of a goat in a peculiar ritual at a local festival. Other regulars are teacher Brendan (Gary Whelan) and doctor Michael (Bosco Hogan).

Aside from butting heads with stern Father Mac and scheming Brian, Father Clifford is well-liked by the townsfolk, and while people are always coming to him for advice, in many ways he's just one of the gang. An extremely moral man, he carefully considers every decision he makes. His struggles throughout the season include finding a suitable form of transportation; participating in a soccer match in which throwing the game would benefit a family in need; reacting to a startling admission by a new friend on his deathbed; and, of course, maintaining his friendship with Assumpta without letting it turn into anything inappropriate.

The show's scenery is beautiful, with every episode offering glimpses of rolling, sheep-covered hills, quiet forests and babbling brooks. The town itself is charming, and the church is impressive, with ornate statues and elegant stained-glass windows. The instrumental theme song is sprightly, and traditional Irish sounds fill the score, though contemporary music creeps into the show as well, particularly in the episode in which the townspeople are divided between enchantment and outrage over a new radio station broadcast from a secret location.

A glance at Ballykissangel's IMDb listing tells me that although the series lasted for six seasons, most of the characters didn't, so it will be interesting to see how the cast evolves. For now, I'm right in the middle of the second season and sympathizing with Assumpta, because Father Clifford is a very easy guy to fall in love with.

Thursday, March 26, 2009

Jessica Tandy Works Simple Enchantment in The Story Lady

With so many other entertainment options available, many people suspect that good old-fashioned books are going out of style. The Story Lady, a 1991 made-for-TV movie starring Jessica Tandy, posits that the thirst for good stories is as strong as ever. In this charming film, Tandy portrays Grace McQueen, a widow who has just moved in with her daughter Meg (Tandy Cronyn) and son-in-law Norm (Richard Masur). Uninterested in the senior center Meg suggests she attend, Grace seeks out volunteer opportunities but is rejected at every turn until she discovers public access television and decides to broadcast her own show reading classic tales like Thumbelina and The Little Mermaid.

Just a silver-haired lady in a rocking chair reading a picture book. It doesn't seem like the formula for thrilling television, but with a little help from Scott (Christopher Gartin), the fresh-out-of-college producer immediately enchanted by her unassuming manner, her weekly show becomes a staple for hundreds of children and their parents. One child especially taken with the series is lonely Alexandra Pollard (Lisa Jakub), who lives with her workaholic mother, Julie (Stephanie Zimbalist). When Julie sees Alex watching Story Lady, she detects an opportunity. It's time to take Grace to the big time. Julie invites Grace to stay with her and Alex in New York City for a week while she films the pilot of a new, amped-up version of her little show. But how will this humble woman hold up under the bright lights of network television?

The film concludes toward the end of December, making this a movie that could be classified as a Christmas special. Key elements of the ending include an elementary school presentation of A Christmas Carol and a special Christmas delivery courtesy of Grace. But most of the movie isn't particularly tied to the holiday. It's an any-time-of-year story of families learning to respect and make time for one another, whether that means cutting back on work hours or simply making a date to enjoy a story together. It's about a mother and daughter reconnecting and a disheartened woman reclaiming a sense of joy by spreading happiness to others.

Tandy leads a strong cast, creating a character who is warm and witty, a bit bewildered by certain aspects of modern life but too savvy to be taken advantage of. Her rapport with young Jakub and the endearing Gartin is especially good, and she shares a great scene with Charles Durning as a judge late in the movie. While the movie is more sappy than comical, there are plenty of funny moments, particularly when Grace gets to the big city and learns what is expected of her. The Story Lady is a feel-good film that families can enjoy together, and its emphasis on quality time and excellent literature is just as refreshing today as when it was made.

Monday, March 23, 2009

Winnie the Pooh and Pals Weather Storms and Confusion in Friends Forever

When I was a little tyke, my favorite Saturday morning cartoon was The New Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. The Disney-fied meanderings of this tubby little cubby always enchanted me, and my fondness for Pooh is one of the things friends and relatives most often remember about me, as my large collection of Pooh memorabilia attests. Several years ago, Disney released a number of small collections of episodes, one of which I recently rented. Growing Up With Winnie the Pooh: Friends Forever is a nice showcase of episodes typical of the series.

Goodbye Mr. Pooh begins with a miscommunication. Tigger bursts in on Pooh, who is about to dispose of some especially raggedy hunny pots. When he tries to explain this to Tigger, his bouncy friend misinterprets the situation and dashes off to announce that Pooh is moving away. The shocked woodlanders plan a going away party for the surprised but grateful Pooh, who then feels obliged to actually go away in accordance with the occasion. When he returns a short time later, he finds Eeyore has moved into his house, so he tries to make a go of it at Piglet's, but the friends discover that even the best of buddies can find it difficult to live together.

This episode has a fairly bittersweet feel to it. After all, how can there be a Hundred-Acre Wood that does not include Pooh? His confusion and his friends' grief at his departure are touching. Eeyore is a bit presumptuous moving into Pooh's house immediately after he leaves, but when your own house is constantly crumbling, I guess you have to seize those sorts of opportunities. It's also a little disheartening to see Piglet growing so aggravated with Pooh; he puts on a polite face, but some of Pooh's living habits clearly grate on him. It's another misunderstanding that brings Pooh back to where he belongs, with his friendship with Piglet unscathed.

Misinterpretations play into Where Oh Where Has My Piglet Gone as well. When Piglet comes over, Pooh, who can never keep track of anything, is busy searching for the hammer he borrowed from Rabbit. Pooh is so wrapped up in his search that he doesn't hear Piglet asking him if he'd like to hear him sing. He goes on berating himself for his absent-mindedness, which Piglet takes to be disapproval of his singing. Shamefaced, Piglet makes a break for it, leaving Pooh aghast that he has now managed to lose his best friend.

Pooh, Rabbit and Tigger organize a searching party but spend most of the evening losing each other in a series of simple but comical mishaps. Pooh is sweetly self-deprecating throughout the ordeal, while his friends grow increasingly panicky and nonsensical, and their dialogue starts to sound like an Abbott and Costello routine as they banter about just who has lost who. Meanwhile, Piglet goes to amusing lengths to avoid subjecting his friends to his voice while still obeying his own compulsion to sing.

Fish Out of Water is a strange episode in which the residents of the Hundred-Acre Wood find themselves under attack by a relentless barrage of migrating trout. They don't stick to the waterways in their travels; they move in a fluid stream, leaping across cliffs and tearing through living rooms. Everyone is inconvenienced by their presence, especially Gopher, whose tunnels they seem to prefer, prompting him to move in with a most irritated Rabbit, who proposes a plan to rid the Wood of these fishy intruders once and for all.

The fish are quite cute, and it's funny to watch them travel over the land as naturally as if it were water. This episode could introduce the concept of migrating fish to youngsters, though the only explanation as to why it happens comes in the form of Pooh telling Piglet that the trout are swimming upstream to do whatever it is that they do upstream. It's nice to see an episode focus on some of the Wood's natural residents, or more accurately visitors. The trout are just passing through, but they are a regular part of the landscape instead of transplants plunked down by Christopher Robin.

Speaking of Christopher, he gets the ball rolling in Pooh Skies. After the imaginative boy spends the afternoon describing to Pooh all the remarkable things he sees in the clouds, Pooh comes to think of that wispy realm as Christopher Robin's, and he becomes desperate to fix it after a hunny-finding attempt goes awry and he knocks a blue eggshell from a nest. Tigger tells Pooh that he's broken the sky, and the storm that turns the sky black moments later seems to confirm this idea. It's up to Pooh and Gopher to find a way up to the clouds and figure out how to stop all of Christopher's dreamscape from disappearing.

The stylized appearance of the cloud world is highly creative, with great billowing structures surrounding Gopher and Pooh as they navigate their way across the unusual surface. Their proactive approach to what they perceive as a terrible problem is impressive, and Gopher's engineering expertise is especially handy here. The basic plotline is similar to The Wishing Bear, which begins and ends with Pooh and Christopher Robin star-gazing rather than cloud-watching and involves Pooh believing he has broken an important element of the night sky. It also reminds me of a few other episodes in which characters' perceptions create a fantastical landscape for themselves.

Between episodes are short scenes featuring paper cut-outs of Pooh and his friends. These brief interludes have the look of a pop-up book and are a fun way to set the episodes apart from each other. I also like the theme song for the video series, though I still prefer the television theme, the wordless version of which plays over the end credits. I'm annoyed with Disney for releasing these episodes a few at a time, scattered across many videos and DVDs, but since I doubt they'll release entire seasons on DVD any time soon, Friends Forever is a fine collection for Pooh fans young and old.

Thursday, March 19, 2009

Jason Segel Gets Freaky Again in I Love You, Man

I go to see movies at the theater for a variety of reasons. One draw lately has been the presence of actors and actresses from favorite television shows as they branch out into films. Freaks and Geeks and The Office got me interested in I Love You, Man, a buddy comedy featuring Jason Segel and Rashida Jones as Sydney and Zooey, the two most important people in the life of socially awkward real estate agent Peter Klaven (Paul Rudd). The R rating might have scared me off of buying a ticket, but I couldn't resist the free preview, so this evening I enjoyed a girls' night out watching a movie all about male bonding.

Judd Apatow isn't attached to this movie in any way, but director John Hamburg, who wrote the screenplay with Larry Levin, seems to be taking a leaf from Apatow's book. The comedy is extremely raunchy, but it also has a lot of heart. Aside from the occasional superfluous f-bomb and some alluded-to pre-marital nocturnal activities, real estate agent Peter is a PG kind of guy living in an R-rated world. He's sweet and considerate, a romantic who is attentive to his girlfriend and respectful to women in general. Around men, he's a little more uncomfortable, partly because he somehow is surrounded by a bunch of boorish brutes, like office frenemy Tevin (Rob Huebel), who laughs uproariously over inappropriate videos and tries to weasel in on Peter's commission, and Barry (Jon Favreau), the aggressive, confrontational husband of Zooey's friend Denise (Jaime Pressly). It isn't until he proposes and Zooey celebrates the news with her gal pals that his lack of male friendships really hits home.

Thus, the first part of the movie finds Peter rather pathetically pursuing a friend of his own through a series of disastrous "man dates" that include poker night with a bunch of beer-swilling hotheads, a soccer game with an excitable guy who sounds like a Muppet and dinner with a fellow who's a little too companionable for comfort. As is so often the case, however, the "aha!" moment comes when Peter isn't looking for it. He stumbles upon the uninhibited Sydney by accident and is taken aback by his candor and their easy rapport with each other. Friendship blooms. Sydney, who supports himself with an investment career but otherwise lives in an extended state of adolescence, begins to bring Peter out of his shell. Peter's happy, and Zooey is happy for him - until it starts to seem like Sydney has taken over his life...

I was a big fan of Nick Andopolis, the earnest, gentle, perpetually stoned teen Segel played on Freaks and Geeks. Sydney is like him in some ways, particularly in his fondness for jamming in his garage. Like Nick, he's a goofball but a good friend. However, he is much more attuned to the world around him than Nick is, and he's got a fairly crass attitude about relationships, especially his own. While I definitely prefer Nick, Sydney is a pretty good guy, and his cleverness comes across particularly well in one scene that requires keeping a close eye on the screen. Jones never really won me over on The Office, but then I suspect she wasn't supposed to. Instead of an icy romantic rival, she's a warm, caring woman here, very much in love with her fiance and eager to show him affection while leaving him space to develop his own interests and friendships. It would have been very easy in a movie like this to turn the wife-to-be into a shrew, but she doesn't come across that way at all. There's never much doubt that these two are an ideal couple. (While we're on the subject of favorite television shows, fellow LOST fans should keep an eye out for a reference that made my friend and me squeal for all in the packed house to hear.)

Some of the more innocent humor in the film derives from Peter's mangled attempts to sound suave when talking with others, particularly Sydney. The results are so ridiculous that I found myself thinking of bumbling Tim nonsensically regurgitating Wilson's sage advice on Home Improvement. I also like the dynamics of his family, particularly between his dad (J. K. Simmons) and brother Robbie (Andy Samberg), who both care for Peter deeply but don't seem to understand him as well as his doting mother (Jane Curtin) does. As a big fan of Saturday Night Live, particularly since his arrival, I could have done with more Samberg, but his scenes do a good job of establishing the dynamics of Peter and Robbie's brotherhood. Unfortunately, for every touching family moment or guilt-free laugh, there is an entirely too anatomical joke or a monologue filled with four-letter words. The profanity is fairly pervasive, and some of the sexually charged subject matter is likely to offend, while a running joke involving dog defecation is distasteful at best. The plus side is that most of the really lewd stuff is verbal rather than visual, so while this movie earns its R rating many times over, it's still considerably less graphic than it could have been.

As with just about every R-rated comedy I've ever seen, I walked away thinking, "Well, I would have liked that better if it had been PG-13." Put my objections to the conventions of contemporary "adult" comedies aside, though, and you've got a movie with a fair number of laughs and a trio of characters you just can't help but root for.

Wednesday, March 18, 2009

The Office's Shortened Fourth Season Doesn't Fall Short

My brother was home from college for spring break a couple of weeks ago, which gave us the chance to watch the last of the four seasons of the NBC muckumentary sit-com The Office, which he got on DVD for Christmas. While it was considerably longer than the teensy first season, thanks to the strike, the fourth season spanned a mere 14 episodes, making it pretty easy to get through in a week.

The Office spent three seasons getting salesman Jim (John Krasinski) and receptionist Pam (Jenna Fischer) together. After all that romantic tension, the season four premiere finds them a couple. Thus, season four marks a fundamental change in the show, much like season eight of Frasier, in which Niles and Daphne finally get together. While Frasier's lovebirds still must clear several hurdles at that point, over the course of the season, nothing really comes along to threaten Jim and Pam's relationship. For them, it's a season of bliss.

Not so much for their office mates, however. Toby (Paul Lieberstein), the human resources representative so reviled by off-his-rocker boss Michael (Steve Carell), always got along well with Jim before, but now he bitterly views him as a romantic rival. Jan (Melora Hardin), Michael's former boss, moves in with him, but their relationship continues to deteriorate as she displays increasingly erratic behavior. Eccentric farm boy Dwight (Rainn Wilson) repulses Angela (Angela Kinsey) when he mercy-kills her cat instead of administering her complex treatments; dorky Andy (Ed Helms) wins her over with a dramatic romantic gesture, but she finds she can't stop thinking about Dwight.

Kelly (Mindy Kaling) is miserable because her boyfriend Ryan (B. J. Novak) dumped her and ran off to be a corporate bigwig. While he loves being able to lord his power over his old officemates, Ryan soon discovers that life in the fast lane has its downsides. Grumpy Stanley (Leslie David Baker) flirts with the idea of transferring to Utica and befuddles Michael with an aggressive show of insubordination. Meredith (Kate Flannery) starts off the season in traction when Michael accidentally runs her down with his car, and lethargic Kevin (Brian Baumgartner) finishes the season flattered by the considerate attention of Holly (Amy Ryan), a new addition to the office, not realizing that she thinks he is mentally challenged.

Although the season is abbreviated, there is still plenty of fun packed into it. Highlights include a fierce salesmanship battle between Dwight and Dunder Mifflin Infinity, the company's just-set-up website; the employees' creative efforts to put together a more interesting television commercial than the one proposed by corporate; Michael's attempt to prove that he can survive in the wild; Ryan's hyperactive antics when Michael and Dwight visit him in New York; Kevin and Andy confronting the other office park bosses about one company's encroachment into Dunder Mifflin's parking lot; and Phyllis (Phyllis Smith) finally getting her big break as head of the party planning committee, leading to the most spectacular going away party the branch has ever seen. Of course, some of the funniest moments still stem from the characters' straight-into-the-camera confessionals.

Obviously, the writers' strike affected the course of this season, but I'm not sure to what extent. The only plot development that feels really rushed is Andy's courtship of Angela, and that seems to be largely a reflection of his overbearing personality. Ironically enough, the season's biggest weakness is probably the unfettered happiness of Jim and Pam; though it's what most viewers were rooting for and it's wonderful to see them so content, that tension drove a lot of the show's comedic conflict. Still, season four is a solidly entertaining chapter in Dunder Mifflin's ongoing saga of silliness.

Piggley Learns a Few Important Lessons in School Days in Tara

Three years ago, I discovered Jakers!, a computer-animated show on PBS that follows the adventures of Piggley Winks (Maile Flanagan), a young lad growing up in 1950s Ireland, as recollected by Piggley as a modern-day grandpa. Piggley is a pig, while his best friends Ferny and Dannan are a bull and a duck. All of the characters are types of animals that are commonly found in Ireland. Each episode is framed by a modern-day situation involving Grandpa Piggley (Peadar Lamb) and at least one of his three grandchildren, twins Seamus and Sean (Nika Futterman) and their older sister Maggie (Melissa Disney). In honor of St. Patrick's Day, I rented School Days in Tara, a collection of four Jakers! episodes. As the title indicates, all four episodes have something to do with Piggley's experiences at school, where he and his friends are under the tutelage of the strict but dedicated goat, Mr. Hornsby (Charles Adler).

In The Salmon of Knowledge, Piggley is bummed out when Mr. Hornsby warns his students that they'd better study up for Monday's big test over the weekend. He'd much rather spend his time blasting off in his Raloo Rocket with his buddies. When his mother jokingly mentions the Salmon of Knowledge, Piggley invents a history for this remarkable fish and determines to catch it. He does succeed in snagging a fish, but Dannan has serious doubts about how useful it will be, while Ferny ultimately decides he'd rather earn his good grade by studying. Will Piggley's salmon provide him with the answers he seeks or just one important lesson? In the modern day, the twins want to cut corners cleaning their room and wish they had a leprechaun who could do the whole thing for them. Their grandpa's story illustrates the importance of putting in the work needed to achieve a desired result.

Rock Around the Cluck was a new episode for me, and it surprised me in a couple of ways. First, I had no idea that Piggley could play the guitar, but he shows his grandkids that he's quite adept at it. I also suspected that a story about Piggley learning to play a musical instrument would involve him growing frustrated with the practice involved, but young Piggley is diligent with his lessons. His problem is a lack of confidence. Though he boasts that he is as talented as the band whose music introduced him to rock and roll, he's not nearly as sure of himself as he appears. When it's time for the Raloo Rockers, featuring Piggley on guitar, Dannan on makeshift bass and Ferny on drums, to debut, lip-synching suddenly starts to look like an attractive option. Music is a big part of this show, which has one of my all-time favorite theme songs, and it's always fun when an episode focuses on it. I also like that this episode allows buttoned-down shop-keeping goat Miss Nanny (Susan Silo) a chance to show her wilder side as a music teacher taken with Piggley's lively tunes.

I hadn't previously seen New Best Friends, either, and I liked it even better than the preceding episode. After Meggie complains about her best friend being out of town, Piggley suggests that she spend some time with a neighbor girl she doesn't know very well. He goes on to recall the time Mr. Hornsby sent his class off in pairs to observe nature one fine spring day, forcing the typical Piggley, Ferny and Dannan trio to split up. Ferny finds himself with impressionable young rabbit Fergal. Dannan winds up with Gosford, a goose just as concerned about grades as she is. Meanwhile, Piggley struggles to cooperate with Hector (Pamela Adlon), a bullying badger. Hector's antagonism and Piggley's hard-headedness cause them to spend most of the day arguing, but when they finally work together, the result is impressive. Dannan and Gosford settle upon teamwork more quickly, though there's still some bickering involved. While sweet-natured Ferny is nervous about taking the lead in a project, he quickly shows that he is a fine mentor to Fergal. Their storyline scarcely has any conflict at all, but I love it because the characters are just so sweet. It's also nice to see Hector show his softer side, which is revisited in the last episode.

In A Little Bit of Something Extra! Extra!, an essay by Dannan about a famous reporter and a dismissive remark by Hector inspire Mr. Hornsby to assign his students to find some news over the weekend and bring it back to the class. Naturally, Piggley wants to take things in a creative direction, figuring an exciting story with a nugget of truth is better than a bland just-the-facts narrative. Disapproving Dannan sets out to prove that facts can be just as fascinating as fantasy, and her search leads to a discovery about Hector that mirrors his gentle behavior toward the end of the third episode. Every installment of this show has a subplot involving Wiley the Sheep (Mel Brooks), a wise-cracking transplant from New York whose monologues whose words just sound like bleating to Piggley and his friends; this is the only episode on the disc in which Wiley's adventures intersect significantly with those of the main characters.

All four episodes are excellent, and the DVD also comes with a number of special features, including games, previews, and informational live action segments. I'm much more interested in just the episodes themselves, but children might have fun exploring these extras. I'd recommend any of the Jakers! collections for folks of all ages seeking a well-crafted show with an Irish flavor. The hour-and-a-half-long School Days in Tara puts particular emphasis on the value of hard work and cooperation with classmates, making it a great tool for encouraging reluctant students. I think we all could learn a thing or two from Mr. Hornsby!

Animal Slapstick Abounds in Dr. Dolittle 2

In the classic Rex Harrison musical based on Hugh Lofting's book series, Dr. John Dolittle is a man who has dedicated his life to the linguistic study of animals, hoping to devise a way of communicating with them. His long years of effort eventually pay off, much to the delight of eager viewers like me. More recently, Eddie Murphy adopted the moniker Dr. John Dolittle for a film whose premise is only similar in the most basic of ways. John also develops the ability to talk to animals. But he doesn't want it. He rejects his ability, and it takes most of the family-friendly comedy for him to come to grips with it. In Dr. Dolittle 2, however, he has finally embraced this gift. It's his embarrassed teenage daughter Charisse (Raven-Symone) who has a problem with it.

Dr. Dolittle 2 is just as innocuous as the first film. It's a firmly PG movie about family togetherness and the preservation of the environment. John, concerned about the growing rift between him and Charisse, proposes a European family vacation to get away from all the eager pet owners demanding his attention. However, he has to put the plans on hold when he receives a plea from several forest creatures to save their home from destruction by business mogul Joe Potter (Jeffrey Jones). He can see only one way of doing it: releasing Archie (Steve Zahn), a rare species of bear previously living in a circus, into the forest and matching him up with a mate. The judge to whom John appeals agrees the replenishment of the species is a worthy cause and grants him a month to get Archie acclimated and amorous.

Zahn brings his usual laid-back, slacker style to the voicing of Archie, who isn't all that interested in the plan - at least until he falls for Ava (Lisa Kudrow), the intended object of his affections. While John tries to teach Archie to fend for himself in the wild, the bear must figure out how to impress the initially disdainful Ava. Meanwhile, John's relationship with Charisse continues to deteriorate, and he still has to deal with the ailments and complaints of a variety of other animals while he puts Archie through his Rocky-style training regimen. Wise-cracking mutt Lucky (Norm McDonald) narrates the story, putting a comical spin on everything John does and embarking on a side adventure of his own.

A lot of the humor in the movie is aimed at kids, with slapstick the most prevalent brand of comedy. Whether it's rats eating their way out of a birthday cake or chickens launching eggs at farmers in solidarity with the forest dwellers who fear losing their home, director Steve Carr gives us plenty to laugh at. Some of the jokes rely on bodily functions, with one particularly onerous scene involving Archie attempting to use a restaurant rest room; the movie really didn't need those moments, and I wish they hadn't been included. Also, a bit in which Crocodile Hunter Steve Irwin gets attacked by an alligator seems distasteful now in light of his death. Most of the humor is inoffensive, though, and I found Murphy more likable in the role the second time around.

With so many different animals voicing their opinions throughout the movie, there are quite a few fairly famous folks in minor roles that might send you running to IMDb, among them Andy Dick, Arnold Schwarzenegger, Isaac Hayes, Michael Rapaport and Frankie Muniz. The special effects are decent, so while the moving of the animals' mouths sometimes looks a bit cheesy, it's not distracting, and because most of the movie is set in a pristine patch of forest, there are some pretty scenic landscapes.

Dr. Dolittle 2 is rather corny and predictable, but it's also a fun movie the family can enjoy together. If you've ever longed to talk with the animals, I recommend hobnobbing with Rex Harrison first, but Eddie Murphy's fresh take on the concept also promises plenty of entertainment.

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

A More Adult Clark Makes New Friends and Enemies in Smallville's Sixth Season

Three years ago, my brother Nathan got me hooked on Smallville, the CW show that re-imagines the adolescence and young adulthood of all-American superhero Clark Kent. Within one year, we'd watched the first five seasons, but we only just finished season six now, which leaves us two seasons behind and despairing of ever catching up before the series concludes. Whether or not we manage it, we'll certainly be sticking it out to the end on DVD.

Every season of Smallville finds Clark and company with different preoccupations. This time around, Clark (Tom Welling) has a doozy of a problem on his hands when he accidentally releases several of the most heinous criminals in the universe from the Phantom Zone where he was trapped by Zod, the evil entity whose possession of Lex Luthor (Michael Rosenbaum) set up the season five cliff-hanger. Rounding up the rogue Zoners becomes his top priority, though he also has his eye on Lex, who is secretly experimenting on meteor freaks while getting uncomfortably cozy with Lana Lang (Kristin Kreuk), who, much as he hates to admit it, is still the girl of Clark's dreams.

For the most part, Lex's devotion to Lana seems to be the only thing keeping him from fully succumbing to his devilish destiny, though there are still flickers of decency that come across elsewhere, particularly in a powerful late-season moment with Clark. Their interaction is limited, however, and generally bristling with animosity. It's clear that Lex hasn't far to go to become Clark's nemesis, just one indication that the series must be nearing its end. I get the sense that if Lana had embraced Lex's advances a season or two earlier, it might have been enough to curtail his villainy; by this point, he's just in too deep.

Another indication that the series is moving into its endgame is the relocation of much of the action to Metropolis and the addition of both the Justice League and bumbling photographer Jimmy Olsen (Aaron Ashmore). As a long-time fan of Jimmy, I was tickled to see him join the cast of characters, though I had mixed feelings about the manner in which he was introduced as an old flame of Chloe Sullivan (Allison Mack), since he turned up just when it was beginning to look like Clark might actually return Chloe's long-unrequited affections. Since we know that Clark has to end up with Lois Lane (Erica Durance), though, I guess there's not much point in throwing him and Chloe together now and risking the strength of their friendship. In that light, adorable Jimmy is most welcome as a sincere suitor and a consistent source of comic relief.

The season drops occasional hints at the future Lois and Clark romance, especially in Crimson, the Valentine's Day episode in which Lois applies some aphrodisiac lipstick with disastrous (but largely hilarious) results. But Clark is still mooning over Lana throughout the season, while Lois spends half the season getting acquainted with charming billionaire Oliver Queen (Justin Hartley), a prep school rival of Lex who turns out to have as many secrets up his sleeves as Clark does. Their sassy repartee reveals a couple well suited to each other, but like most of the romances on this show, their blossoming love is threatened by the things they conceal from each other.

Even Martha Kent (Annette O'Toole) has a romantic prospect on the horizon, though in this first full season since the death of the Kent patriarch, her grief is too fresh for her to consider anything beyond friendship with the ever-enigmatic Lionel Luthor (John Glover). He is a powerful ally for her as she strives to serve honorably in the senatorial seat Jonathan won at such high personal cost. At this stage of the game, Lionel may be the most fascinating character for me simply because he's such a wild card. Chloe is the only other major player without an established destiny in Superman mythology, but it's a pretty safe bet that Clark's best friend isn't suddenly going to turn evil. Lionel, on the other hand, started out pretty rotten, and some of his actions in this season still seem reprehensible. But he also appears to be fighting for the side of good at times, and if nothing else, his affection for Martha is genuine. While his redemption would be ironic in the face of Lex's ultimate villainy, it would lessen the sting of that terrible transformation. Like Michael Emerson, who portrays the inscrutable Ben Linus on LOST, Glover constantly keeps us guessing with his complex performance.

In some ways, this is a very dark season. Lex's plans grow more and more grandiose and grotesque, and we learn in a flashback of a disturbing chapter in his youth. The Zoners wreak major havoc on some unsuspecting humans - not to mention the fact that there are still troublesome meteor freaks to contend with. The hustle and bustle of urban Metropolis can't match the comfort of bucolic Smallville, and an intrusive, oppressive score often ensures a skin-crawling sensation, especially in any scene involving Lex. On the other hand, new situations and characters inject freshness into the series. Many of the scenes with Lois and Oliver and Jimmy and Chloe are just plain fun, and it's a kick to see how the writers find ways of paying homage to these characters' forebears. Noir, an episode late in the season in which Jimmy dreams his way into a film noir version of his life, plays like a love letter to The Adventures of Superman. Clark has his own alternate experience with reality in Labyrinth, a much less aesthetically pleasing episode that finds him cooped up in a mental institution; reminiscent of LOST's Dave, in which an old friend of Hurley's turns up to inform him that the Island is all in his head, it allows us to see these familiar characters from an unusual perspective.

While I started getting tired of Lana's drama queen ways back in season two and always faulted Clark just a bit for overlooking the intrepid Chloe in favor of whispery, whiny Lana, giving her such intimate access to Lex puts her in an interesting position this year. Though she shows an alarming capacity for duplicity and vice, she also reveals the depth of her feelings for Clark, taking the character in refreshingly tender directions as she comes closer to figuring out just what he's been hiding all these years. Having Lois follow in Chloe's footsteps by writing for a tabloid is a fun way of bringing her closer to her journalistic future, and Chloe's bond with Clark is as solid as it's ever been, with one late-season development giving her role as his most reliable wingman even more creative possibilities.

Smallville grows more complex every season, sacrificing some of the innocence of previous seasons but creating a more intriguing web of plots and characters so that each episode is an important piece of the puzzle rather than being just a showcase for the meteor freak of the week. Will Clark ever don the famous suit and take to the skies? I can't wait to find out!

Friday, March 13, 2009

Richard Jenkins Turns in a Subtle, Superb Performance in The Visitor

I didn't make too much of an effort to see a lot of nominees before the Oscars this year, but I did peruse Netflix and find a few films that were recognized by the Academy and were actually out on DVD already. One of the ones I added to the list was Tom McCarthy's The Visitor, for which Richard Jenkins received a Best Actor nomination.

A few years back, McCarthy directed The Station Agent, a quiet movie about a little person named Fin who moves into a train depot in the middle of nowhere after the death of his only friend. The two movies are similar in many ways. Like Fin, Professor Walter Vale (Jenkins) is recently bereaved and not very sociable. Just as gregarious hot dog vendor Joe helps bring Fin out of his shell, cheerful Syrian musician Tarek (Haaz Sleiman) is a liberating influence on Walter, despite the awkward circumstances of their meeting.

Walter spends most of his time in Connecticut, but he owns a Manhattan flat, and he's startled when he enters one day and finds two immigrants living there. One is Tarek, the other his stand-offish girlfriend, Zainab (Danai Gurira), who is from Senegal and earns money selling handmade jewelry. They claim to have rented the flat from someone Walter has never heard of and offer to vacate the premises immediately. At first, he agrees, but they're not long gone before he chases them down and invites them to come back.

So begins an unconventional friendship that deepens when Walter discovers his fondness for Tarek's African drum-playing and begins to learn how to play the large instrument himself. The first half of the film has a fairly light, buddy comedy feel to it, but it takes a more sober tone when Tarek is arrested and faces deportation, as we discover he is an illegal immigrant. While Walter tries to find a way to free his friend, he develops romantic feelings for Tarek's mother Mouna (Hiam Abbass), who comes to New York from Michigan to be near her son during his ordeal.

Clearly, McCarthy is making a political statement about illegal immigration in his movie, but mostly, it's a moving human story. Jenkins is wonderfully understated as the repressed professor whose window into another culture awakens passions he didn't know he had. Though he finds interaction with others awkward, he is polite and considerate to Tarek, Zainab and Mouna and eventually grows genuinely comfortable around them.

There's a lot of subtle humor to his mannerisms, and I found myself reminded a bit of James Cromwell's Farmer Hoggett as I watched. While it's intriguing to watch his characteristics change over the course of the movie, some of his funniest scenes are with minor players who barely share the screen with him, including brisk piano teacher Barbara (Marian Seldes) and dorky dog owner Jacob (Richard Kind).

While the romance that unfolds between him and Mouna is touching, his friendship with the emotionally open Tarek is more significant, as this is the relationship that has such a lasting effect upon his outlook on life. Though the movie does not provide a neat Hollywood ending, it does make it clear just how profound Tarek's impact has been.

Aside from one outburst near the beginning of the movie, there's very little profanity or violence in this PG-13-rated film. It deals with a complex issue, but The Visitor is primarily a story of unlikely friendships among a quartet of people who are, in one way or another, visitors.

Thursday, March 12, 2009

Abe and the Amazing Promise Takes a Backseat to Blunders in Boo-Boo-Ville

I've been acquainted with VeggieTales, the computer-animated Christian video series created by Big Idea, for more than a decade now, and I still get excited every time a new video is released. Last month, it was Abe and the Amazing Promise, a lesson in patience. I watched it with a group of Sunday school kids who proved that they could use this lesson when they snatched up the VeggieTales balloons we'd brought for them to take home and, while we were getting the DVD ready, started competing with one another to see who could blow his or her balloon up the fastest.

In the video, it's cookies that have Junior Asparagus all worked up. With usual co-host Larry the Cucumber away for the day, Junior has the honor of hosting along with Bob the Tomato, but he's a lot less interested in this job than he is in the cookies his mom has promised him after the show. As a result, when he and Bob take an imaginary trip to visit Abraham (Pa Grape) and interview him about his long wait for his son Isaac, Junior is so busy trying to speed things up that he completely misses the point of the story until a frustrated Bob finally calls a time-out.

This is the first new Bible story adaptation from VeggieTales in two years, and it's a pretty important one, so it feels a little disrespectful for it to be presented in such a chaotic manner. Additionally, while Abraham starts his story at the right time - when he is 75 years old - he claims that Isaac was born 15 years later, rather than the Biblical 25. I can't see the reason for shaving off ten years. I also think that his wife Sarah (voiced by popular radio personality Delilah) is portrayed as too passive; we don't really get a sense of her impatience.

The message gets across in the end, and there are fun moments along the way, including a running joke about a nurse (the eccentric Akmetha) enthusiastically mistaking the word "patience" for "patients" and an amusing re-imagining of Ur as an ancient retirement community complete with shuffleboard. I wasn't so crazy about the recurrence of camels projecting green globs of spit across the screen onto various characters, but the kids seemed to love that bit...

The silly song finds us in yet another doctor's office; this seems to be a favorite locale for the Veggie folks, whether it's a generic doctor (Belly Button), a psychiatrist (Love My Lips) or a vet (The Yodeling Veterinarian of the Alps). In Sneeze If You Have To, Larry is the doctor, and Bob is the patient who must be patient as he waits for the sweet relief of a sneeze that just won't come. Larry waltzes around the office, singing of his willingness to help with extravagant gestures, many of which are, naturally, perfectly ridiculous. This one didn't seem to hold the kids' attention as well as some of the others, but I liked it.

Despite the name of the video, Blunders in Boo-Boo-Ville is much more elaborate and carefully crafted than the Abraham segment. In this tale, Jacques (Larry) is an inventor in a quaint town that makes me think of Belle's village in Beauty and the Beast. He's a very clever fellow, but he never takes the time to complete his creations properly, nor do his fellow inventors in town. They all rush through the work and wind up with shoddy craftsmanship, which is especially troublesome when the object is potentially dangerous.

In some ways, this story is a bit of a retread of Sheerluck Holmes and the Golden Ruler, in which Larry is the braggy detective and Bob is his long-suffering assistant. Their relationship is similar here, but after Larry's lack of consideration lands Bob in a heap of trouble, the green guy has to go it alone for a good chunk of the story as he tries to figure out a device that will lure back the birds for which the village is named. A quest to retrieve the book penned by the town's most famous inventor leads him to a reclusive oddball whose home is a mechanical wonderland. What words of wisdom might this accomplished fellow have to offer?

This segment is incredibly appealing visually, with so many different oddball inventions to marvel over, but then there is great attention to detail in every element of this story. There are several songs, my favorite of which is the lively, lyrically complex first number, in which Jacques and his buddies sing about their need to get things done in a hurry. Toward the end, a gentle lullaby that Jacques' mother used to sing drives the story's point home in a tender way. Not only is this part of the video complex, funny and visually appealing, it seems to pay homage to The Lorax, one of my two favorite Dr. Seuss books, injecting a hint of environmentalism into the story.

The DVD ends on such a high note that it almost makes up for the faults of the first tale, but it's such a significant story that I think it ought to have been handled a bit differently. Still, for the most part, Abe and the Amazing Promise is an enjoyable Veggie installment.

Wednesday, March 11, 2009

The Office DVD Board Game Is Fairly Fun for Fans

Over the past couple of years, my best friend Libbie had mentioned to me that she got a laugh out of The Office, so this Christmas I decided to get her The Office DVD Board Game, which tests players' knowledge of the show with a variety of challenges. The only trouble was that I'd never seen more than a snippet or two of the show myself, so I wasn't sure how soon I'd be able to play it with her. Imagine my surprise when my brother got the first four seasons of The Office on DVD for Christmas. Perfect timing!

I know of at least one other board game relating to The Office. This one, which comes with cardboard stand-up figures of all the major characters, includes only tidbits from the show's first three seasons. The first time I played it, there were still several episodes of the third season that I hadn't seen, so I was at a mild disadvantage, but there's a pretty good mix of questions from different points in the series.

While the questions are divided into several different categories, identifiable by the icon (Stapler, Beet, Sheriff's Badge, Dwight Bobblehead, Pepper Spray, Mug, Dice) on the screen that corresponds to the one on the game board, most categories lead to some type of trivia question regarding the show. For instance, you may be asked to finish a particular quote or identify the character who said it. Other questions are only very tangentially related to the show, like asking for the director of a movie mentioned by one of the characters.

The most oddball category requires contestants to work together to accomplish a physical task such as making paper dolls. This could be fun, but it's also time-consuming, especially since we don't know ahead of time what materials are needed. When Libbie and I land on this category, we generally choose another category to play instead. Additionally, there's some confusion about how the betting works in the one category that requires it. You're allowed to put down more than one Schrute Buck, but there doesn't seem to be any incentive to do so, since as far as I can tell you're only supposed to get whatever the other person laid down. Nothing in the rules seems to clarify this issue.

The board itself, and especially the currency, reflect the season three finale in which Dwight Schrute has reason to believe that he is now the manager of the Scranton branch of Dunder-Mifflin. As an incentive program, he institutes Schrute Bucks, which feature his face in the middle. In the game, answering questions correctly yields these bills, and collecting enough of them will ensure that when you land at Michael's desk, you'll win instead of being booted back to another area of the game. Because it takes a while to accumulate a winning number of Schrute Bucks, it usually makes more sense to take the long way around the board, but if you want to take the short cut, you'll have to deal with Dwight, whose desk serves as a roadblock for every player taking that route. Given its unique position in the game, I would think the Dwight icon would yield an especially challenging question, but these queries tend to be about as basic as the others.

Seasoned fans of The Office should enjoy the chance to test out their trivia knowledge, but it's not what I'd call an intensive game. Most of the questions aren't terribly tricky, and while the world-weary narration by H. R. man Toby Flenderson (Paul Lieberstein) is amusing and helpful as you're learning to play the game, it gets a bit old when he says the same things over and over. Same goes for the small rotation of clips that often are not directly related to the questions being asked. I'm sure Libbie and I will play this game again, but it's not the type of game that can be played for hours on end. It's fun, but it definitely could have been better.

The Men of Celtic Thunder Look as Good as They Sound

A few years back, my parents and I discovered the music group Celtic Woman the way most people did - by seeing the concert / fundraising extravaganza on PBS. A few months ago, that same format introduced us to Celtic Thunder, the male counterpart. The groups are cut from the same basic mold, but Celtic Thunder is much more pop-oriented, with a number of songs that aren't representative of Celtic culture at all. There's also the matter of all the squealing women, a phenomenon absent from the Celtic Woman concert, and the fact that only one member of the quintet plays a musical instrument as part of the show. Still, if you like Celtic Woman, chances are you'll get a kick out of Celtic Thunder too.

The official concert DVD contains 28 different songs, all of which can also be found on the CDs Celtic Thunder and Celtic Thunder: Act Two. For more detailed comments on each of the songs, see my reviews of those albums. This review will give more of a general overview of the material, broken down by performer, and discuss visual elements that set the DVD apart from the CDs.

George Donaldson

George is the senior member of Celtic Thunder at 41, and his shiny bald head gives the impression that he's older still. Though he is Scottish, he reminds me of Joe Millar, the oldest member of the Irish Rovers who often performs their most beautiful ballads. George's rumbling baritone is well-suited to his solo songs, all of which revolve around family in one way or another. What George, a respected balladeer with an impressive music career already behind him, lacks in the eye candy department, he makes up in gravitas. He feels like the wise older brother to the rest of the pack, and he sings his songs with affection and sincerity.

The Voyage is the first of his songs that I heard. Its nautical theme goes well with Heartland, which starts off the show, and it reminds me of Desmond, the seafaring Scotsman from LOST. Like the elegiac The Old Man and the conflicted My Boy, it is achingly tender. Yesterday's Men is distinct from the other three by virtue of its bitter tone and spirited tempo. Oddly, it's included as a "bonus track," accessible only through the song list and not integrated as a part of the concert. Hence, it was the last of George's songs that I heard, and although it's a downer, I think I've settled on this lively number as my favorite of his songs.

Ryan Kelly and Paul Byrom

A 30-year-old from Northern Ireland, Ryan looks like a more mischievous version of Donny Osmond. He was the first member of the group that I saw, when his warm smile and sparkling eyes enhanced his moving rendition of Desperado, which is probably still my favorite track on the DVD. His smile is far more faint on the wistful Brothers in Arms, increasing its impact when it finally turns up. For Heartbreaker, he struts and smirks as he plays off of a serene cellist and a fiery dancer, impishly growling out his flimsy protests to the accusations lodged against him. Halfway between the two is Ride On, which feels restless and regretful all at once.

While Ryan is fairly new to professional music, having obtained two degrees in accounting before getting involved in Celtic Thunder, lanky 29-year-old Irishman Paul Byrom is classically trained and has released two albums. He has an old-fashioned look and sound about him, and his face tends to wear a sweetly melancholy expression. While I almost consider him too polished for my tastes, there's no denying he has an excellent voice. While Ryan's subject matter is varied, all of Paul's songs have a romantic theme.

In the theatrical duet That's a Woman, Paul plays the sap against Ryan's sneering cynic as they debate the value of a particular woman seductively portrayed by dancer Zara Curtis. This is one of the funniest moments in the show, though it's a rather sad commentary on human relationships, since two parties are completely shallow, while the other is hopelessly naive. Paul's other songs all allow him the opportunity to show off his pipes, though Remember Me and Love Thee Dearest feel rather out of place with their Spanish and Italian lyrics. Nights in White Satin has a slightly more contemporary sound, though it seems trapped in the 80s; all the close-ups on Paul's pensive facial expressions make the song more appealing, however. My favorite of his solos is the soulful She, which builds from a soft start to a powerful finish.

Keith Harkin

22-year-old Keith, a feathery-haired blond from Northern Ireland, reminds me of David Cassidy in his heyday. Like Paul, he specializes in romantic songs here, and he's certainly got the teen dream thing going on; you can just hear the flutter of sighs sweep across the tweens in the audience when he takes the stage, and the effect seems amplified when he accompanies himself on the guitar. He does this for the gentle Mountains of Mourne, an epistolary ballad about longing for one's homeland and the people connected with it. I love his earnest delivery as well as the lilting flute whose melody floods the stage like a summons home on my favorite of his songs.

The Island is similarly stirring, with a snarky political message offsetting the dreamy chorus, though I find myself a bit distracted by Keith's oversized fisherman's cap, which threatens to obscure his eyes. Lauren and I, which Keith penned himself, feels nicely authentic in a show that is so carefully manufactured, while the overwrought I Want to Know What Love Is comes off as a tad cheesy. I feel like the producers could have matched him up with a better selection on this one.

Damian McGinty

16-year-old Damian is from the same part of Northern Ireland as Keith, and there is a certain similarity in their youthful tenors that caused me to mix them up on the album before I watched their performances. At the time this concert was filmed, Damian was only 14, and seeing this bright-eyed lad perform is a kick because he looks so much younger than he sounds. "What is he, like, seven?" my brother demanded as he studied the cover. Judging by their gleefully astonished expressions, he seems to be the favorite among most older audience members in Dublin.

He plays the wunderkind card to the hilt in Puppy Love and Young Love, two songs about a teenager's first experience with romance. He hams it up particularly in the former, while the latter is more amusing for the baffling antics of Ryan, Paul and Keith, who take the stage dressed in Damian t-shirts and trail him like a trio of starry-eyed groupies. He plays it natural for his other solos, though, letting his pure tone transport listeners in Come By the Hills, a simple, lovely song that pops up elsewhere on the DVD as the backdrop to an advertisement encouraging people to visit Ireland. With such a lovely invitation, that's an offer that's hard to resist... Damian's other big moment is A Bird Without Wings, which pairs him up with George, who supports him with subtle background vocals. That paternal touch may just be enough to make this soaring song of gratitude my favorite of Damian's songs.

Ensemble

The men sing a few songs together, and there's power and harmony in the blending of those voices. The complaint some might have with the DVD is that these group numbers also subject us to some potentially corny choreography and costumes. Their manner of moving when they are all on stage together has a curious military-style precision to it, and there's something weirdly Matrix-like about seeing the five of them standing there in jet-black kilts with matching suit jackets during Caledonia, the big bagpipe-laden finale. Bagpipes also play a big role in the Paul McCartney-penned Mull of Kintyre, and there are several drummers in red plaid kilts, but the singers get to stick with more conventional legwear for that one.

I like the set-up of the stage, which is designed to look as though it were made of ancient stone and which allows performers to pass by the orchestra divided into two pits and come within arm's reach of the audience. I'm also a fan of the shifting lighting and the atmospheric cloud background projected along the back wall, and though I think they sometimes get carried away with the fog, it fits the stormy motif well. The stormiest song of all is Heartland, an epic request for divine intervention from several sailors. There is particular power in the men's blended voices here and in the gung-ho Ireland's Call, while the most exquisite harmonizing comes about in the a cappella Steal Away. Since most of their songs are so serious, the manic energy of Raggle Taggle Gypsy makes for a nice change, and it gives the outstanding instrumentalists, particularly the percussionists, a chance to demonstrate their prowess. These talented musicians also get one song all to themselves with Cal / Local Boy.

If you want to check the guys out without committing to the DVD or waiting around until it airs on your local PBS station again, all of the songs on this DVD, plus a handful of others, are available on YouTube. If you find yourself hooked as quickly as we were in my house, the Celtic Thunder concert DVD should prove a very worthwhile investment.

A Little Child (Named Wesley) Shall Lead Them in When the Bough Breaks

Now that WGN has started showing Star Trek: The Next Generation, I've been getting reacquainted with Captain Picard (Patrick Stewart) and his crew. Most recently, I watched When the Bough Breaks, an episode that had always stuck out in my mind because of the prominence of children in it.

The beginning of this episode finds second-in-command Will Riker (Jonathan Frakes) geeking out over the Enterprise's proximity to a utopian world called Aldea. Though the planet, a place of peace and prosperity, is widely considered a fairy tale, Riker is intrigued by the possibility that it could actually exist but be cloaked. When the Aldeans suddenly initiate contact, he is especially eager to communicate with them.

The captain, too, is fascinated, and he readily agrees to a conference. What the men discover, however, is unsettling. Yes, the Aldeans have an advanced civilization dedicated to peaceful pursuits and possessing great stores of knowledge. But something has happened to make them lose the ability to procreate. Desperate to preserve their culture, they propose a trade. If the Enterprise will hand over its children, the Aldeans will share their carefully guarded information.

When Picard and Riker refuse, the Aldeans resort to kidnapping, beaming the children down to the planet against their will. The oldest of these is geeky 14-year-old ensign Wesley Crusher (Wil Wheaton), and he quickly assumes a leadership role among the others, who include musical, melancholy Katie (Jandi Swanson); artistic, rebellious Harry (Philip Waller) and tiny, affectionate Alexandra (Jessica and Vanessa Bova). While the Enterprise crew try to figure out a way of retrieving the children, the youngsters plot a way of quietly resisting their benevolent captors.

The one image that had really stayed with me from this episode was Harry using a fascinating sculpting tool to create a dolphin out of wood during his time with a pair of encouraging artisans. More than any of the others, this boy, who had recently squabbled with his father (Dierk Torsek), takes to his new environment, feeling nurtured and appreciated instead of ignored and pressured. The subject of the fight, incidentally, was Harry not wanting to take calculus, and I remember thinking that he looked way too young to be worrying about calculus, but I suppose they teach these subjects to increasingly lower grades... The character really made an impression on me, so it's a shame he doesn't show up in any other episodes. Neither do Katie or Alexandra.

The leader of the Aldeans is a man named Radue (Jerry Hardin). While he is incredibly invested in the difference he believes the children will make for his people, he feels rather uncomfortable around them. Not so Rashella (Branda Strong), the youngest member of the society, who immediately takes to little Alexandra, adopting her against Radue's wishes, since a parental match was already provided for her by the computer on which the Aldeans depend for every aspect of their daily lives. When Wesley is taken to the computer, his guardian is baffled by his question about how the machine works. It soon becomes clear that his zeal for poking around with circuits may serve him well here.

It's nice to see so much focus on the children of the Enterprise and how they react to being whisked away from their families and treated like royalty. The conclusion seems to be that most children would rather remain with their loved ones than live a life of luxury among strangers. The episode also warns against letting one's brain get soft by becoming too dependent upon technology, and it shows that you don't have to be all grown up to make a difference. Though it makes little use of the main crew aside from Picard (who shares a couple of uncharacteristically tender scenes with the children), Riker and the distraught Dr. Crusher (Gates McFadden), When the Bough Breaks is an intense and emotional episode that is one of my favorites.

Tuesday, March 10, 2009

The Office's Third Season Brings a Breaking - and Re-forming - of the Fellowship

Anytime you have a show with a large cast, there's the potential for some fracturing as various characters move in different directions. In The Office, the NBC comedy about a pack of quirky office drones working for the Scranton branch of fictional paper company Dunder-Mifflin, the third season is marked by this sense of disconnectedness. The first third of the season alternates between Scranton and Stamford, the branch to which lovable everyman Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) has relocated. Though a branch merger eventually brings him back to Scranton, it's in the company of several new characters, and it takes most of the season for the Scranton branch to settle back into its old groove. While the shake-up isn't necessarily a bad thing, it does facilitate the most awkward moments yet in the series.

Probably more than in any season, Jim is the focal point here, as the camera follows him to Stamford (where one co-worker hilariously mocks his habit of gazing meaningfully into the camera and slowly shrugging). While the position and the pay are better there, his main reason for going was to avoid the heartache of working with his best friend, engaged receptionist Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer), to whom he bared his soul without receiving the response he had hoped for. Meanwhile, Pam, belatedly admitting that her feelings for Jim are strong enough to keep her from the altar, has called off her wedding to the insensitive, incompatible Roy Anderson (David Denman) and is missing Jim terribly. Roy, who spends the first half of the season meek and disheveled, becomes much more likable in his chastened state, though his brutish side comes roaring back when he discovers the true reason Pam broke off the engagement.

With Pam all at once available, we start off season three thinking that Jim ought to come running back to Scranton so he and Pam can live happily ever after. But the show doesn't let us off that easily. First, Jim has to get settled into his new environment, where he thrives at his job but misses the laid-back atmosphere of the Scranton branch. We are introduced to several co-workers, most notably Andy and Karen. Andy Bernard (Ed Helms) is Stamford's version of Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson), and his aggressive streak and active attempts to make a nuisance of himself make Jim actually appreciate his geeky former nemesis. There's an air of affection in the way he continues to pester Dwight from afar, and we're rewarded with one of the funniest scenes of the season when the gullible beet farmer reacts to a fax sent by "Future Dwight". Karen Filippelli (Rashida Jones) is a driven young businesswoman who slowly but surely succumbs to Jim's charms, creating great tension when she is one of the employees who joins Jim in Scranton after the Stamford branch closes.

For everybody rooting for a Jim and Pam romance, Karen is not a particularly welcome addition here. She's now standing in the way of their happy reunion, and her interference is more galling than Roy's since it probably wouldn't be an issue if Jim had just stuck around Scranton instead of running away from his problems. While Karen has some pleasant qualities, she carries herself with a very icy air. There's definitely a sense that she, like hot-shot young temp Ryan Howard (B. J. Novak), thinks she's above most of her co-workers - including new boss Michael Scott (Steve Carell), who is as clueless as ever.

Initially, boot-licking Andy is pretty obnoxious, and when he connives to dethrone Dwight, it suddenly becomes apparent that despite all his irritating qualities, Dwight is actually a pretty great guy to have around. After a stint in anger management, however, this hammy uber-WASP, a Cornell grad who is excessively fond of singing a cappella, becomes much more endearing. Though he and Dwight have very different personalities, their tendency to be over-the-top makes them play off each other wonderfully. Especially amusing is the extensive interview of Andy that Dwight conducts when he believes that management of the Scranton branch will soon fall to him and he'll need a second-in-command. (Highlight for this LOST fan? Dwight: What is the DHARMA Initiative? Andy: It is the center of all energy on Earth. Dwight: Wrong! It is a corporation run by aliens. In a DVD set packed with deleted scenes, this kooky conversation from the last episode of the season is my absolute favorite.)

With so much focus on Jim, Pam and the newbies, some of the supporting characters take more of a backseat, but there's still plenty for them to do here, particularly in the terrific Beach Games, in which Michael uses a team-building field trip to determine which of his underlings is most qualified to serve as his successor. Throughout the season, H.R. Eeyore Toby Flenderson (Paul Lieberstein) resignedly bears the abuse Michael heaps on him, and hints of his attraction to Pam become stronger. Lovably cranky Stanley Hudson (Leslie David Baker) shows surprising enthusiasm for Pretzel Day, while Phyllis Lapin (Phyllis Smith) must fret over whether the wedding of her dreams will be compromised by the overzealous Michael.

Creed Bratton (Creed Bratton) candidly reveals more unsavory tidbits about himself, and chatty Kelly smothers the reluctant Ryan in their less-than-blissful relationship. Oscar Martinez (Oscar Nunez) spends a good chunk of the season missing as he enjoys a vacation compliments of the company, attempting to smooth over an unintentional slight by Michael regarding his orientation. Petite, severe Angela Martin (Angela Kinsey) continues her unlikely affair with Dwight, while fellow accountant Kevin Malone (Brian Baumgartner) finds his non-office-related relationship on the rocks. Meredith Palmer (Kate Flannery) has a close encounter with a bat in a bizarre but quite touching episode directed by Joss Whedon of Dr. Horrible's Sing-Along Blog; Michael's buttoned-up corporate love interest, Jan Levinson (Melora Hardin), demonstrates that she doesn't quite have her act together; and warehouse king Daryll Philbin (Craig Robinson) gives Michael some pointers about negotiating a higher salary.

There are 23 episodes in this DVD set, several of which are forty minutes long instead of twenty, all of which include deleted scenes. Aside from those always-amusing gems from the scrap heap, my favorite extra this time around is the music video Lazy Scranton, a parody of Saturday Night Live's Narnia-touting Lazy Sunday that Michael and Dwight prepare as a welcome to the Stamford gang. Given the fractured nature of this third season, I wouldn't recommend starting here, but if you've breezed through seasons one and two, number three will not disappoint.

The Office Gets Down to Business in Season Two

This past Christmas, my brother received the first four seasons of The Office on DVD. He didn't have to head back to college until mid-January, so we got a fair bit of viewing in during that time, and he managed to get us completely hooked. While the first season is a fun introduction to the characters, it's so short, at only six episodes, that it seems more like a mini-series that kicks things off than a full season. Season two really plunges into the characters, letting us scrutinize all the quirks and foibles of the employees of the Scranton branch of the Dunder-Mifflin paper company.

The fearless leader is Michael Scott, played to the zany hilt by Steve Carell. Michael is a boss who is desperate to be liked by all of his employees, though he often sabotages his efforts to ingratiate himself by cluelessly making inappropriate remarks. He excels at wasting time, and the logic behind his thought processes tends to be truly baffling. In this season, one of his primary preoccupations is Jan Levinson-Gould (Melora Hardin), a hard-nosed superior with whom he unexpectedly shares a tender moment. Convinced that there's more to their relationship than one tipsy encounter, he pursues her for the remainder of the season, even as he puts the moves on Carol (Nancy Walls), the real estate agent who sold him his house. Meanwhile, he manages to wreak havoc with his staff time and again, whether he's proving himself inept at keeping a secret, leading uncomfortable seminars or handing out office awards that nobody really wants.

Michael's second-in-command is Dwight Schrute (Rainn Wilson), an aggressively anti-social beet farmer whose off-the-wall remarks are among the strangest on the show. While Dwight is often maddeningly self-serving, he becomes more sympathetic this season as he embarks upon a covert relationship with uptight accountant Angela Martin (Angela Kinsey), a devout Christian and cat lover who relishes her role as head of the party planning committee, and reveals greater depths of geekiness, making allusions to the likes of Star Wars, Lord of the Rings and LOST. In the fourth episode, The Fire, Dwight demonstrates the extent of his oddness when Jim initiates a "What three books would you bring with you to a desert island?" game. His answer? "Physician's Desk Reference - hollowed out. Inside: waterproof matches, iodine tablets, beet seeds, protein bars, NASA blanket and, in case I get bored, Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone. No, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban." This was the moment when I declared my allegiance to Dwight for the rest of the series.

Perhaps the most normal people in the office are salesman Jim Halpert (John Krasinski) and receptionist Pam Beesly (Jenna Fischer). They make the drudgery of their jobs bearable by collaborating on elaborate pranks, of which Dwight is almost always the victim. They're young, attractive and totally into each other. There's just one problem: Pam is engaged to the boorish Roy Anderson (David Denman), a warehouse worker who isn't really a bad guy but who certainly doesn't seem like a good match for Pam. The gradual resolution of the romantic tensions between Jim and Pam reminds me of the long-deferred Niles-Daphne relationship on Frasier; in both cases, the heart of series lies largely in wanting these star-crossed lovers to finally have a shot at real happiness together.

With the main players already well established, season two delves more deeply into the less prominent but still crucial characters. The only other woman in Pam's age bracket is Kelly Kapoor (Mindy Kaling), a customer service representative of Indian descent who is scarily skilled at speaking at Micro Machine Man speeds. She has her eye on Ryan Howard (B. J. Novak), the fresh-out-of-college temp on whom Michael fawns, much to Ryan's discomfort. Kelly is ditzy, while Ryan has plenty of book smarts and a pretty high opinion of himself, though when it comes down to it his value to the company is rather limited, especially since he considers himself above many of the tasks Michael assigns him.

Sharing the accountants' corner with Angela are articulate, well-coiffed Oscar Martinez (Oscar Nunez), an underused character who has a moment in the spotlight late in the season, and pudgy, lethargic Kevin Malone (Brian Baumgartner), who reacts to the shenanigans of his office-mates with an elementary school mentality. Back in the annex with Kelly is sad-sack Toby Flenderson (Paul Lieberstein), the human relations guy who is constantly butting heads with Michael over his management style. Consequently, Toby is the one employee who Michael detests, which adds to the pervasive exhaustion reflected in the bags under Toby's eyes.

Middle-aged saleswoman Phyllis Lapin (Phyllis Smith) generally brings a kind, maternal presence to the office, though party planning encounters with Angela bring out some less admirable aspects of her personality. Her demeanor tends to be quiet but cheerful, while fiery-haired alcoholic Meredith Palmer (Kate Flannery) comes across as sour and oversexed. Creed Bratton (Creed Bratton), the oldest member of the staff, first makes a big impression in Halloween, when he talks Michael, who has been pressured into laying off an employee, into letting him stay. In charge of quality control, he rarely plays a significant role in the workings of the office, but this creepy, out-to-lunch renaissance man can often be counted on for a hilariously random aside.

Down in the warehouse with Roy is Daryll Philbin (Craig Robinson), a no-nonsense black man who is leery of Michael interfering with his team's productivity and enjoys yanking Michael's chain by feeding him phony ghetto phrases. Up in the office, the only black employee is Staney Hudson (Leslie David Baker), a grumpy bulldog of a guy whose rolled eyes and terse statements make it very clear that he doesn't take kindly to Michael's interruptions, which could cost him sales. When that interference comes in the form of mandatory meetings, Stanley expresses his disdain by ignoring the presentation and working crossword puzzles.

This season gives all of these characters opportunities to interact with one another in ways that are sometimes meaningful and always amusing. The mockumentary style of the series allows for frequent instances of characters directly addressing the camera; some of the funniest bits of dialogue and most revealing character details come out in these short soliloquys. Several episodes take characters into a different setting, whether it's the Chili's where Michael hands out the annual Dundies awards, the ice skating rink where he holds his birthday party or the warehouse he so gleefully infiltrates. The office itself takes on a different flavor at times, too, particularly when Jim institutes a competition consisting of all the games that people have made up to stave off boredom and when various employees bring their children and step-children to work with them.

No matter what the circumstances, this show is full of surprises, with every episode guaranteed to have loony lines that will catch you off guard. With 22 episodes, there's a lot more to chew on here than in the first season, not to mention that there are more - and funnier - deleted scenes for each episode than for any series I've seen on DVD, with the possible exception of Freaks and Geeks, the other series produced by Paul Feig. Other special features like PSAs presented by various characters and a series of short scenes dealing with an accounting mystery add to the set's value.

When I started watching The Office, my friend informed me that season two was her favorite, and I can understand why. In terms of establishing character, it's the cornerstone of the series, and there is still plenty of new territory to explore at this point. It's also pretty easy to pick up the series here without having watched the first season, as my dad did; in later seasons, there are some pretty substantial plot twists that might throw new viewers for a loop, but if you want to dive into The Office with a full set of episodes, season two won't leave you confused. Still, I recommend catching it from the beginning, especially if you're a Netflix member, as the first four seasons are not only rentable but also available for instant viewing. Just be warned: It's mighty addictive!

Stunning Animation and Tender Relationships Make Brother Bear 2 a Worthy Sequel

Back when Brother Bear came out, I was wowed by the beauty of the previews and figured it would be the most visually appealing Disney movie since Pocahontas. The sweeping panoramas of unspoiled wilderness certainly didn't disappoint, but I wondered if such care would be taken with Brother Bear 2.

This sequel may have been direct-to-video, but I found it just about as enthralling as the original. If you can get past the premise of a guy turning into a bear, it's a fun, romantic romp with breathtaking scenery and well-written songs. While the story is largely about Kenai (Patrick Dempsey) and his "adopted" kid brother Koda (Jeremy Suarez), the primary focus is on Nita (Mandy Moore), Kenai's childhood sweetheart.

After Kenai saved her from drowning when they were children, he gave her an amulet to represent the depth of their friendship. Unsurprisingly, the two lost touch when he became a bear, and now he's a distant memory to her, but a reunion becomes a necessity when her attempt to enter into an arranged marriage is unsuccessful because the powers that be consider her already committed because of the necklace. Her task? Find Kenai, and go with him to the spot where the amulet was given so that they can destroy it together during the Vernal Equinox.

Nita is aided in her mission by the temporarily bestowed gift of being able to communicate with animals. With the speech barrier gone, other challenges separating her from her old friend seem much more surmountable. The real issue is that once Nita and Kenai reunite and begin to fall into their old rhythm, it's clear that affection between these two runs very deep. Is breaking that bond really the best course of action?

There are plenty of adventurous scenes to keep youngsters entertained, including a thrilling pursuit through a racing river and a treetop battle with a troop of raccoons that recalls Jane's troubles with monkeys in Tarzan. There's also plenty of comic relief from moose pals Rutt (Rick Moranis) and Tuke (Dave Thomas), who are fixated on securing the admiration of a pair of female moose who couldn't be less interested. Back in the village, Nita's squabbling aunts also provide a few laughs, and spirited Koda feels a bit like wise-cracking Donkey, with Kenai and Nita as Shrek and Fiona.

But the movie is more about heart than humor, from the sensitive songs by Melissa Etheridge to the dynamics among the main trio and Nita's relationship with her tender, widowed father (Jim Cummings). As Kenai finds himself torn between his self-appointed duty as caretaker to Koda and his desire to return to his former life with Nita, it becomes fairly easy to guess at the unconventional ending, but that doesn't prevent it from being a touching conclusion to a sequel that was obviously handled with great care.

Tuesday, March 3, 2009

Celtic Thunder Fans Get Twice the Music With Act Two

Over the past few months, I've gradually become acquainted with more and more of the songs of Celtic Thunder, the five-member singing group that is the male equivalent of Celtic Woman, now a PBS staple. While the first album has been in our house for upwards of two months now, we've only had Act Two, primarily drawn from the same concert event shown repeatedly on PBS, for a few weeks. Unlike the band's first album, simply titled Celtic Thunder, it includes several songs that are not found on that special, so if you're looking to cover all your bases with this group, this album is a must-have.

The stars of the show are (at the time it was recorded) 39-year-old George Donaldson; 28-year-old Paul Byrom and Ryan Kelly; 20-year-old Keith Harkin; and 14-year-old Damian McGinty. George is from Glasgow, Scotland; Paul is from Dublin, Ireland; Ryan from The Moy, Northern Ireland; and Keith and Damian from Derry, Northern Ireland. Each member adds a distinct vocal flavor to the group, from George's rumbling baritone to Damian's fluty tenor, as well as a unique personality, with poetic Paul, rebellious Ryan and sensitive Keith competing for the squealing affections of the female contingent of the audience.

Ride On - Ryan's accent is more pronounced in this angsty adrenaline rush of a song than on any other track, which is one reason I like it so much. He half-growls his vocals as the swirling instrumentals threaten to envelop him, giving the song a much more intense flavor than the reflective, acoustic-guitar-driven version by Christy Moore. I first heard this song when Dad discovered a YouTube video pairing it with clips of Aragorn and Eowyn from Lord of the Rings; the lyrics, with its undertones of respect, urgency and regret, seem to fit that relationship especially well, particularly given their mutual equine expertise. Though Ryan gets the designation of the slightly dangerous member of the group, this speaker foregoes desire for duty, reining in the impulses of his churning emotions. "Ride on. See you. / I could never go with you no matter how I wanted to..."

A Bird Without Wings - From that rather dark beginning, we proceed to Damian's soaring inspirational ballad, a Wind Beneath My Wings type of tune that, given enough airplay, could become just as classic. There's something especially touching about George's subtle "la da de da"s in the background; serving as the voice of the speaker's constant protector, his voice exudes paternal warmth. This is the sort of song that could apply to many relationships, but considering the fact that George is old enough to be Damian's father and given the familial bent of his Celtic Thunder repertoire, it's easy to see this as My Boy from the son's perspective. Open to a range of interpretations, the stirring, simile-laden song of gratitude seems likely to turn up at graduations and other landmark events before long. "Like a church with no steeple, / Where a bell never rings, / In a town without people, / Where no voice in the choir ever sings. / If a boat on the ocean / Would be lost with no sail, / Then without your devotion / Surely all that I dreamed of would fail."

My Boy - It's especially easy to make the connection between the songs when one directly follows the other. Elvis Presley sang this song, but George introduced me to it with his passionate rendering of a solemn soliloquy. There's darkness in the song's context of a failing marriage, but the speaker's determination to stick it out for the sake of the son he so ardently loves overrides the disillusionment that ripples through the verses. There's so much story and emotion wrapped up in this song, it feels like it should be a centerpiece of a Broadway musical. The fact that George chooses to start a couple of verses by speaking rather than singing amplifies that effect. I've yet to hear Elvis's version of this song, but I find it hard to imagine him getting to the heart of the lyrics any more intensely than George does. "Life is no fairytale / As one day you will know, / But now you're just a child. / I'll stay here and watch you grow / Because you're all I have, my boy. / You are my life, my pride, my joy..."

Raggle Taggle Gypsy - I find this fast-paced, traditional group number rather hard to follow. The lyrics almost seem in the way here; just about every line feels like it has more words than should logically fit, and while these guys have nothing on the Irish Rovers for nonsensical syllables, I find all those "-o"s tacked onto words a tad distracting here. This is really more of a showcase for the Celtic Thunder Orchestra, as the rollicking instrumentals are quite impressive, particularly the pounding percussion. "It was upstairs and downstairs the lady went, / Put on her suit of leather-o. / 'Twas a cry all around the door, / 'She’s away wi’ the raggle taggle gypsy-o.'"

Love Thee Dearest - Paul showing off his operatic self. The English part sounds archaic, pitted with "thee"s and "thou"s, while the bulk of the song is in Italian. Paul sings it gloriously, and those who appreciate this type of music should find it satisfying, but it's just not my style, and it seems a little out of place in a Celtic-themed concert. My least favorite of Paul's solo numbers. "Love thee dearest, love thee. / Yes, by yonder star I swear / Which through tears above thee / Shines so sadly fair."

I Wanna Know What Love Is - And it's followed up by my least favorite of Keith's songs. His delivery is fine, but I can't hear this song without seeing visions of late-night infomercials advertising collections of overwrought power ballads. It's one of those songs that has been ruined for me by the way it's sinisterly crept into my consciousness in the middle of the night over the years. Same complaint goes for Paul's rendition of Nights in White Satin three tracks down. Celtic Thunder and pop can mix astoundingly well, but Ryan reaps the most benefits from these pairings. Keith and Paul kinda get the short end of the stick.

Heartbreaker - Ryan sizzles his way through this saucy tango, the apex of his "bad boy" persona. There's a tinge of regret in his snarly vocals that makes it just a little easier to sympathize with this love-'em-and-leave-'em cad. This is Ryan at his most seductive, and it's easy to imagine woman after hapless woman succumbing to his charms. Deliciously devilish, this is another song that feels like it could go in a musical. As I listen to it, I visualize a whirlwind series of courtships and perhaps a few slaps in his face. This guy is sort of the opposite of the fellow in Ride On, a relentless pursuer who refuses to be tied down, though such is the extent of his protestation that I can't help but wonder if one particular girl has gotten under his skin more than he would like... "They say I’m the dark destroyer, / That I just can’t enough / Of girls hanging on a string, / That I’m only after one thing..."

Mull of Kintyre - This sounds like an old traditional folksong that could have been written a couple centuries ago, but in fact it was penned by Paul McCartney, which is rather nifty. It's an ensemble effort, though George's voice is most prominent, which feels natural since it strikes me as a reflection by a man who's seen his share of the world and is now coming to a much deeper appreciation of his hometown. While Mountains of Mourne, Keith's big solo on the first album, reminds me of Isle of Innisfree, my favorite of the Irish Rovers' traditional no-place-like-home odes, this one is more like Bonnie Kellswater. Both are pretty songs, but they don't quite resonate with me as strongly as the former two. Still, there are some nice harmonies in this one, and the drums, which appropriately are the instruments most dramatically highlighted throughout the two albums, are fantastic. "Mull of Kintyre / Oh mist rolling in from the sea, / My desire is always to be here, / Oh mull of Kintyre."

Young Love - This peppy Damian number is pretty much a repeat of Puppy Love from the first album, minus the excesses of anguish. Same fun 50s sensibilities, same opportunities for Damian to demonstrate just how adorable he is. On the DVD, this song is a humorous high point, but the goofy side antics of Keith, Paul and Ryan are lost without the visuals to support them, making the purely audio form fun but fairly forgettable. "Young love, first love / Filled with deep devotion. / Young love, our love / We share with deep emotion."

Yesterday's Men
- This scathing song appears on the DVD as its sole bonus track. George rips into this bitter reflection, with the speaker's affection for his longtime workplace buddies who are in the same boat the only thing keeping rage against his dismissive employers in check. The speaker's feeling of helplessness as he suddenly faces uncertainty in his role as provider for his family resonates powerfully in this era of recession and rampant corporate layoffs. The song is a rallying cry that seems like it ought to be made into a full-blown PSA-style video. George speaks for a jilted generation here, and his righteous indignation couldn't be more timely. "Farewell my companions, my friends and my workmates , / Farewell to the paydays, the pints and the craic. / Oh, we gave them our best years, now they've paid us back / By making us yesterday's men ."

That's a Woman
- One area in which Celtic Thunder is a tad lacking is the humor department, so I was delighted the first time I saw this performance and found myself laughing aloud. Some of the amusing elements are lost in the absence of the physical dynamics of Ryan derisively circling the hopelessly smitten Paul and his ladylove, but this theatrical face-off remains a lot of fun. Paul, for his part, rhapsodizes about the joys of a devoted woman, while Ryan tries to cut him down, spitting out misogynist slights in a rant that reminds me of Henry Higgins' A Hymn to Him in My Fair Lady. The contrast between the two men's approaches to women is played up to hilarious effect (and I'm always rather amused by the line "a delicate creature is something she ain't," because it sounds so much like he's saying "ate"). This is easily my favorite of Paul's songs, and the one that makes me feel a bit guilty that I'm not especially drawn to him, since the phrase "nice guys finish last" proves painfully accurate in this little power play - though without the visual cues, it's a more open-ended conclusion.  "How to say ‘no’ with a flick of her hair, / She’ll turn you and burn you and not even care, / That’s a woman, that’s a woman. // Faithful and true, that’s a woman. / Trusting in you, that’s a woman..."

Danny Boy - This is conspicuously absent from the concert; despite the fact that the lyrics were written by an Englishman, the impression persists that it is the quintessential Irish song, so I was glad to find it represented on the album. Naturally, it's a group effort; it wouldn't be fair to give something so iconic to just one singer. Some of the group's loveliest harmonizing occurs in this song, though at times I think they get a bit carried away, almost losing track of the melody in their efforts to flesh it out as fully as possible. As someone who generally much prefers male voices to female, I'm a bit surprised by the fact that I actually prefer the Celtic Woman version, but then their rendition is almost impossibly delicate, a quality that makes me on the verge of declaring my search for a definitive version of O Holy Night complete with the Celtic Woman Christmas album. My biggest issue with the Celtic Thunder version is that they skip the second verse entirely, which packs the biggest emotional whallop; instead, they expand musically upon the first verse. The results are pleasing to the ears, but in its shortened state, the song falls just shy of expectations. "But come ye back when summer's in the meadow / Or when the valley's hushed and white with snow. / 'Tis I'll be here in sunshine or in shadow. / Oh, Danny boy, oh, Danny boy I love you so."

Caledonia - Celtic Woman also covered this song, which is an ode to Scotland that's just about as rousing as Ireland's Call from the first album. Like Ireland's Call, Caledonia probably ought to close out the CD. At least in this case the album ends with a group number, though it feels slightly detached from the rest since it's a Christmas song. At any rate, this song makes great use of all the guys, and the Irish lads seem just as enthusiastic about honoring George's homeland as their own. Appropriately, he's the one to start things off, but everybody gets equal time here, and Ryan even gets in one more rakish jab with "I've kissed the girls and left them crying." "Let me tell you that I love you / And I think about you all the time. / Caledonia, you’re calling me, now I’m goin’ home."

Heartland - A repeat from the first album, except that this one includes a couple minutes of introductory material, including a menacing-sounding bit of voice-over narration from Phil Coulter, some truly thunderous percussion and other especially atmospheric instrumentals. This reverent supplication is one of my favorite Celtic Thunder songs, but this extended version clocks in at more than six minutes, so while it's neat to have this option available, I'm more inclined to listen to it without the intro. "When the storm is raging / And thunder rolls, / Deliver us from the ocean. / Save our souls!"

Castles in the Air - This one caught me by surprise, both because it's not part of the PBS concert and because it's the second time Keith has performed a Don McLean song. I thought it was interesting but not particularly significant that McLean had covered the same traditional song as Keith, but this is a McLean original, which makes it seem that Keith is purposely being paired up with the American Pie scribe. Keith plays this one light and airy, with rippling piano behind him and a faster tempo. I can hear certain similarities in their tonal qualities, though Keith's voice lacks McLean's melancholy edge. In a plea to a pal to break off an unfulfilling relationship for him, the speaker throws us right into the thick of things, starting off in the middle of a conversation and leaving us to guess at the circumstances leaving this friend caught in the middle. "And if she asks you why, you can tell her that I told you / That I'm tired of castles in the air. / I've got a dream I want the world to share / And castle walls just lead me to despair."

Christmas 1915 - One of the most beautiful, inspiring, despairing Christmas songs I've ever heard. The subject of the pitfalls of war comes up many times in the first Celtic Thunder album, but Act Two leaves the pacifist sentiments to the last track, for which a video exists, though it seems to have been done separately from the concert. A narrative drawing upon the experiences of soldiers at the front lines during the Christmas Truce of World War I, it contains the most pristine harmonies of any of the group songs. The men switch off often, with rarely more than small snippets of lines to themselves, which augments the impression that these are the recollections of many individual soldiers suddenly sharing in the humanity of the men they'd been trying to kill - and soon would again. Unlike Snoopy's Christmas, the novelty song alluding to the same historical event, this ballad drags the soldiers back into the trenches to resume the bitter battle, though the final chorus contains a note of hope amidst the carnage. "Silent night, no cannons roar. / A king is born of peace forevermore. / All's calm, all's bright, / All brothers hand in hand / In 19 and 15 in no man's land."

Perhaps ending with Christmas is a clue as to Celtic Thunder's next project. I've little doubt that unless they disband alarmingly quickly, we can count on a Celtic Thunder Christmas album before too long. I'm holding off on doling out that O Holy Night award until then...