Did you get bored watching reruns over the holidays? Well, put all that behind you; good things are coming. This week, in fact, is the start of Season 2 of Damages, which Ms. Snarker will tell you all about on Wednesday. I’ve already bought my popcorn and I expect Glen to melt the butter.

Then next week, on Jan. 16, Battlestar Galactica returns to wrap up its story. Who is the final Cylon? With this cast, who the frak cares?

January is just crazy with season premieres of returning shows. Tonight, Scrubs shows up at its brand new home, ABC, with Chief of Medicine Courtney Cox on hand to give it an energy shot. … continue reading

When you think Christmas, do you think major religious holiday or big bucket of popcorn? I’m a movie-on-Christmas girl, so I’ve been checking out this year’s big Christmas releases. And I have to say, I wish I was a little more excited about them.

In this soft economy, Hollywood executives are probably hoping for a repeat of Christmas day last year, when moviegoers spent $9.5 million on Alien v. Predator — Requiem. Or they’d really love a replay of 2004 when Christmas celebrants spent $19.5 million on Meet the Fockers. (Because nothing says Christmas like an exploding RV toilet.)

This year’s crop doesn’t give us alien showdowns or mismatched family wackiness, but we do have some dogs and Nazis. So let’s take a look at the offerings to assess what’s worth seeing.

Marley & Me

Marley & Me gives us Jennifer Aniston and a really cute lab puppy (played, of course, by approximately a zillion puppies) that grows into a beautiful dog. The dog is difficult, but the family learns lessons about life and love and loss. And Kathleen Turner is in it, so how bad can it be?

According to the reviews, it could be pretty bad. However, as a newlywed with a difficult dog — who is snoring as I write this — I can relate, and might see it for that reason alone. … continue reading

Christmas day is just around the corner, and you know what that means: ribbons, tags, packages, boxes, bags — and the release of half a dozen much-hyped, mega-budget films. Among them is the movie adaptation of Will Eisner's The Spirit. It doesn't have any Nazis, puppies or backward-aging babies, but it promises killer performances from a bevy of women who want nothing more than seduction and destruction.

Scarlett Johansson plays Silken Floss, a frigid vixen; Eva Mendes plays Sand Saref, a conniving jewel thief; and Jaime King plays Lorelei, a phantom siren.

Of course, no superhero's tale would be complete without the quick-witted girl next door. To balance out Spirit's femme fatales is the police commissioner's daughter, Ellen Dolan, played by out actress Sarah Paulson. … continue reading

Last night, we got to see the first lesbian president of the United Stated on 24: Redemption, the two-hour prequel to the return of the series 24 in January.

OK, so the character wasn't a lesbian, but she was played by Cherry Jones, so that kinda counts. (I haven't watched the movie yet — it's saved on my DVR for the Thanksgiving break.)

New York magazine recently interviewed Cherry about her role on 24, and asked her about Prop. 8:

You’ve been out of the closet as a lesbian for a very long time and have a partner. Thoughts on Proposition 8?
In another four or five years, the people who voted for it will be really ashamed of themselves. I remember for the first time Bob Dole said “gay marriage” on the Senate floor. Obviously he was against it, but the fact that he said it in my lifetime, I couldn’t believe. I think we’re hurtling toward tremendous change.

Have you and your partner had a commitment ceremony?
No, we have not had a commitment ceremony. I’ve never needed to get married. Marriage, to me, is a religious ceremony between people and their individual faiths. As far as my nation and my sexuality are concerned, I just want the rights of every civil marriage in this country. I have tremendous appreciation for the leaders of this movement.

When The Advocate interviewed Jones just before the election, she elaborated more on her relationship with actor Sarah Paulson: … continue reading

Talking posters? That’s just crazy talk! What’s next? Moving pictures in a flickering box? An interconnected network that instantly shares data around the world at the click of a button? Oh, wait, those things already exist? Fine, then maybe the talking poster for the new comic book turned motion picture The Spirit isn’t that weird after all.

[Click here for the talking poster, but hurry back so we can talk about it!]

Roll your mouse over each character (Eva Mendes as Sand Saref, Scarlett Johansson as Silken Floss, Jaime King as Lorelei and out actress Sarah Paulson as Ellen Dolan) and you will hear her signature line. I don’t know about you, but I’ve been using it like a mix machine and making my own talking poster mash-up. It’s kind of fun. Or perhaps I’m just a geek who is too easily amused.

Also amusing, or should I say arresting, is the film’s teaser trailer:

The film is an adaptation of the 40s noir newspaper comic by the same name from writer/artist Will Eisner. In the comic, a young detective is killed only to return as a crime-fighting, mask-wearing vigilante. Gabriel Macht (Because I Said So) plays The Spirit in the film by Frank Miller (writer/director of Sin City and creator of 300). Miller’s last stint behind the camera was the visually stunning but narrative-leaden Sin City. Miller uses that film’s striking graphic novel style again in The Spirit. … continue reading

I have a disclosure to make: “Ace” is not my full name. It's actually “Ace Randy Gal.” I have, however, been known to answer to “Carnage Lady.” And occasionally to “Calendar Gay.”

These monikers are the result of a boring afternoon at work coupled with the The Internet Anagram Server. Put a bunch of word nerds in the same room as an anagram server, and you've got yourself a party! That was eight years or so ago. “Ace” stuck, and the anagram server (plus the less labor-intensive Anagram Genius Server) get revisited from time to time. Recently, I spent some time procrastinating with the servers and had a blast. Because I'm that big a geek. And because I really didn't want to do my work.

I learned that one of my friends is an “Arch Lesbian.” And that an AfterEllen.com staffer could be an “Old Animal.” And that there are no good anagrams for my girlfriend's name. (However, one version of our dog's name comes out to “Destroyer and Might,” which I think he likes.)

But on the celebrity front, the possibilities abound. (For the record, all of the following anagrams come from the Internet Anagram Server, the Anagram Genius Server or the Anagram Genius Archive.)

I began with The L Word, just because.

Kate Moennig, appropriately, is “Token Enigma.” And Erin Daniels is “Ideal Sinner.” (I'm sure my girlfriend thinks so, anyway.) And Jenny Schecter is “Insufferable, dog-killing wack job.” (But that's just commentary, not an anagram.) Mia Kirshner is “Shinier Mark” (but if you misspell “Kirshner” as “Kirschner,” you get “Manic Shirker”!) Jenny Schecter + Sounder = “Jesus! Northern Decency.” Daniela Sea is “A sane ideal.” And, for the record, Bette Porter + Tina Kennard = “Broke, penitent retardant.” … continue reading