Ramblings

• I am a little behind on this review, but I think the new Guns N' Roses album ("Chinese Democracy") is very good. It is more "Use Your Illusion" than "Appetite for Destruction," so some rock fans might not like the power ballads. I love them. "Street of Dreams" is probably already in my top 10 G N' R songs of all time -- although the first minute sounds like the vampire rock opera in "Forgetting Sarah Marshall." Axl's vocals remind why he is my favorite rock lead singer ever. I'm not sure why the album took 12 years to make or why my boy Saul Hudson (and the rest of the band save Axl) do not play on any of the songs, but the album still has G N' R's distinctive sound. Check out Chuck Klosterman's review of the album: http://www.avclub.com/content/feature/chuck_klosterman_reviews?utm_source=avclub_rss_daily

• "Friday Night Lights" is one of the best shows on TV -- and you probably don't watch it. Until recently, I didn't watch it either. I didn't watch for 3 reasons: 1) I didn't like the movie (Billy Bob Thornton as a high school football coach? Come on.), 2) I thought it would be the TV version of "Varsity Blues" (I own "Varsity Blues" on DVD but I realize that it sucks), and 3) It airs on Fridays. I watched the first two seasons on DVD, and it is MUCH better than the movie and MUCH better than "Varsity Blues." The writing and acting are great, and the guy from "Early Edition" is phenomenal as the head coach. I also like that the football scenes are well done, but the show is only about 10% football. The drama is better than just about anything else on TV right now. Season 3 starts this Friday (January 16) -- I don't understand why the producers of this show don't realize that most people that would be interested in this show (age 15-40 crowd) are not watching TV on Friday nights. Often, these same people are ATTENDING HIGH SCHOOL FOOTBALL GAMES at 9 P.M. on Fridays. Fortunately, I have DVR and am excited about Season 3.
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• "90210" didn't exactly live up to the hype I gave it on Tuesday. I feel like the writers are moving through the storylines a little too fast. I mean, couldn't they have dragged out the storyline about Harry's scheming biological son for more than one episode? The storylines are moving twice as fast as those on The O.C. (which were already moving too fast). Slow down the pace and keep the crazy plot twists in moderation. It wasn't even remotely shocking that the black girl is a lesbian. Why? On a side note, the Dr. Pepper product placement at the Peach Pit is out of control -- I thought it was supposed to be an upscale coffee shop now? As my buddy Dean pointed out, Virginia Tech basketball player A.D. Vassallo must love "90210" -- see the link for explanation: http://www.timesdispatch.com/rtd/sports/college/college_football/article/VTVTGAT23_20081223-120405/160786/

• The new season of "The Real World" is only one episode deep, but it might be the worst cast ever. For the first time ever, the cast is 8 people (instead of 7) but it still seems to uphold the stereotypical lineup (with one exception). There's a gay dude, a weird chick, a jock, a fratty dude (actually a military vet that didn't go to college), a naive Mormon, a white girl that dances, a black girl, and a post-op transgender "girl" (the aforementioned exception). I can't imagine that I will enjoy this cast, but -- as always -- I will watch.
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• I can't tell if Tim Tebow is a saint or the most self-righteous athlete of all-time. Tebow announced today that he would return for his senior year at Florida. "Overall, I just felt loyal to this place," Tebow said. "I feel like I'm a role model, and a lot of times people start things and don't finish them. I didn't want to be like that. I wanted to be loyal to the university. I wanted to finish what I started and play another year." I wonder if the fact that draft experts project Tebow as a 3rd or 4th round pick AT FULLBACK had anything to do with his decision. It was probably the role model thing.