Oh, I meant to say last night. What's up with the shadow puppets? First on Firefly, now in guy's apartment. A shoutout? Obsession?

So do you think it was a sincere comment, or a snappy wisecrack, when she said it at the end?

Put me in the sincerity wrapped in a barb category.

Was it a "good" thing to do? Not really, but Rebecca's judgement's a little skewed in general.

And I don't know that I buy the "control" thing as presented by Rebecca (I keep wanting to spell her name "Rebekah", which is my spelling. CogDiss baby) vis a vis the murderer/dom thing.

Because I'm thinking that if the session ends with you dead, you pretty much by definition either didn't have control or had a very intricate suicide plan.

very intricate suicide

Nah, that was last week.

I don't think Rebecca meant it as a wisecrack, exactly -- but I think she was very aware that there was some serious edge to her saying it.

True enough, amych, but if you're also manipulating someone else into doing you that's an extra layer of weird complexity.

Death by snarkery. I wonder if that's a checkoff box on the coroner's forms?

I don't think Rebecca meant it as a wisecrack, exactly -- but I think she was very aware that there was some serious edge to her saying it.

I don't know - in a way it read to me as a really tender moment, which gave me a kind of shocked thrill. Wherever the control lies, in the earlier scenes she was in his world - and now suddenly he's been thrown into hers, and she becomes the guide. So I didn't take it as just a suface "you were right, and now you'll see how much stronger you are after suffering" exactly. But - eh, I don't know. I can see how you can definitely take it as barbed, but I thought there was something else going on there.

Because I'm thinking that if the session ends with you dead, you pretty much by definition either didn't have control or had a very intricate suicide plan.

Wait, wasn't she saying that Brandt was in control, that Strong was never in control? And Strong was the one who died. Or did I totally misread that line.

Or am I not understanding what you're saying?

I can see how you can definitely take it as barbed, but I thought there was something else going on there.

Actually, I agree -- I think it was both pointed and sincere, and not a surface thing at all. I'm still poking at it with my brain to get at all the tasty layers of that exchange, but it was the prickliest bit of tenderness on record.

Hart Bochner? I haven't seen him stalk or kill anyone since Apartment Zero.

Oh, my good lord, that *is* who it was. Dude. He's really good at that kind of character. I loved when he was taking Paul and Rebecca apart in the interview room without even breaking a mental sweat.

They wish the ratings were bigger, of course. But House debuted at about the same place. And they dig the show. They hope it builds.

And who could have forseen that "Dancing with the Stars" would be such competition? (I don't tape it and fast-forward through it later. Shut up.)

Wait, wasn't she saying that Brandt was in control, that Strong was never in control?

I thought that was a little...eh. I mean, Strong ended up dead, so hey, but I'm not sure I would characterize that whole interaction as Brandt being in control.

So last night, I got a breaking news alert in the middle of the show. The big news was that there were a lot of people around Texas without power. Why this was important, I don't know, since if you were one of the ones who lost power, you probably already knew (and didn't have a TV on), and if you did have power, who the hell cares? Anyway, I lost a fairly important part of the episode.

During the re-enactment, I got to the point where Rebecca says: "He let me go." And then the next bit I saw was when Mel and Danny were going after Preacher Boy. Can anyone summarize what I missed while I was cursing at the TV anchor?

I think it was both pointed and sincere, and not a surface thing at all. I'm still poking at it with my brain to get at all the tasty layers of that exchange, but it was the prickliest bit of tenderness on record.

Yes, exactly.

I think it was intended as sincere, but for all of her "Bad Paul, no judging!" from earlier in the episode, she does judge him. For daring to make a game out of what she's been through for real and presuming to understand anything about real power or control, even if she also understands that that's a false comparison on many levels, and therefore a really unfair judgement to make.

licks Jessica's spicy brains