"Z" and Wild Bill

Posted on by
I love getting mail from my buddy, Jim Ivey. He doesn’t use a computer so it’s snail mail only. The great thing is, that Jim always includes a doodle or two. His most recent letter contained caricatures of me and Bill Black. Jim used photos from his 83rd birthday bash for reference. You read that right, Jim’s 83 and still full of “prunes and macaroons” as he often says.

I not only hope I have as much energy as Jim when I’m 83, I wish I had it now.

"The Shield" Final Thoughts

Posted on by
The series finale to “The Shield” was a fitting ending to one of the best crime/cop shows ever on television. Although it would have been impossible to live up to everyone’s expectations, the series did manage to go out as it came in… with an episode to surpise, shock and keep you thinking long after the end credits rolled.

Let’s end this post with an “interview” with “Shield” creator Shawn Ryan held after he watched the series finale with a half dozen critics. It’s fun reading and provides a lot of insight into what made “The Shield” so great. [Hats off to Alan Sepinwall of The Star/Ledger for putting it together.]

When Computers Go Hinky

Posted on by
I’ve spent the better part of the afternoon and evening dealing with computer problems. Ugh! I ended up having to shut down the computer and reboot it back to it’s original settings. Of course that meant I then had to re-load drivers for my scanner, re-set up my e-mail, re-load programs, and deal with all of the other nonsense that must be dealt with when computers go hinky. Double ugh!!

At least I have “The Shield” to look forward to in less than 15 minutes. If it’s good as it should be, my computer problems will be a faded memory.

Hoping for Breathtaking!

Posted on by
We’re just a little over 24 hours away from the final episode of “The Shield.” Although a few critics have seen how the show wraps up, nobody is giving away anything. I’m glad. I can’t wait to take it all in and see who lives and who dies.

Gillian Flynn, TV Critic for Entertainment Weekly, saw the finale and concluded her write-up for the November 28th issue by saying:
“When the end comes, it’s breathtaking — and what’s even more stunning

is, after you’ve catalogued all of Mackey’s unforgivable sins, you’ll still find yourself rooting for him…”

If the finale is even half as good as the premiere episode, we’re in for a great hour and a half of television… and if it turns out to be as Flynn says, “breathtaking,” even better.

Pop-Up Help Needed!

Posted on by
I’ve been plagued by the pop-up pictured above. I can not get rid of it. I’ve tried Ad-Aware, Spybot, CA Security, but nothing works. I’ve done research and can’t find anything out there that will get rid of it. Any ZONErs who can pass along something that will work would be greatly appreciated!

The Shield: Predictions Please!

Posted on by
Next Tuesday, FX will air the final episode of “The Shield.” I’m proud to say that I’ve been a fan of the show since episode one of the first season. I’m equally proud to say that I’ve turned on several friends and family members it as well. If you’re a fan of the show, I’d love to hear how you think it will end. There’s been a lot of speculation among devotees of the show. Some of the more interesting predictions include:

  • Mackey will get away clean. [I really don’t see this happening.]

  • Mackey will die. [I tend to think not.] He will be killed by Ronnie. [Wouldn’t that be a twist? Mackey killed Terry Crawley because he was going to “rat out” the Strike Team and that’s exactly what Mackey did to Ronnie.] He will be killed by Dutch. [I’m not convinced Dutch will live — see below.] He will be killed by Shane. [Nah.] He will be killed by Mora. [Nah.] He will be killed by Corrine or Cassidy. [I just don’t see it.] He will be killed by Armenians. [That could happen if they discover that Mackey sold them out to the Feds.]

  • Dutch will be killed by the serial killer kid. [Boy, they sure are foreshadowing it. It would be shocking to see Dutch as he lays dying come to the realization that the kid had outsmarted him. I like Dutch though and hope that he doesn’t kick the bucket.]

  • Shane will be killed by Mackey. [Possible and at one point I really wanted to see that… not so much now though.] He will be killed by Ronnie. [Very possible.] He will turn himself in for a deal to spare Mara. [Another possibility.]

  • Claudette will die. [If watching Mackey get immunity didn’t kill her, I don’t think that she’ll just drop dead now — but you never know.] Claudette will lose it and kill Mackey. [Boy, that would go against everything she has stood for since the show started… so I don’t think so.]

  • Ronnie will go to jail because of Mackey’s confession. [Possible.] Ronnie will run. [More likely — and then he may be caught and go to jail or be killed.]

  • Cassidy will be captured and raped/tortured or killed when the Aremenians find out that Mackey double-crossed them. [Boy, wouldn’t that be a twist? Mackey becomes the cause of his daughter’s ruined life. THAT would be worse than prison.]

  • Corrine will be killed by Mackey when he learns that she ratted him out and in turn he ratted out Ronnie to save her from a non-existent charge. [I don’t see Mackey killing any of his family members.]
I think that Mackey will survive but be forced to live with the fact that the events that he put into motion caused him to lose his job and his family. There’s an outside shot that Mackey will die, but I hope that he goes out with some dignity if it happens. I think things look grim for Shane and his family. Mora may survive, but I think Shane is going to die. Ronnie will have to run to survive and I’m not convinced he’ll make it. Dutch may be in a serial killer’s crosshairs and it would be shocking for him to become a victim. I hope he is smarter than that. Claudette has been the moral compass of the show, but I’ve got a bad feeling in regard to her character. I think we may discover that Shane killed the female cop in order to get away. Dani should end up alright. Same for Billings and Julian. I’m not so sure about Aceveda.

So let’s hear your predictions! Then we’ll come back next week and see who came closest to getting it right.