All Fluff...No Filling. "Cupcake Wars"

Cupcake Wars (2009)

Combing through the archives of stuff I've watched but have never reviewed, I stumbled across Cupcake Wars, now streaming on Netflix.

Now, before I get hostile hate mail about the reality shows that I stream, do remember that I liked quite a few of t hem.

But this offering from the Food Network is...

lame.

Bakers square off to make the best batch of cupcakes and a chance at 10,000 bucks.

The viewer watches and quickly grows bored.

We've seen all these challenges before.

Beat the clock.
Impress the judges.
Move on to the finals.

Except the other shows had other things for the bakers to do besides bake cupcakes.

Anyone with an oven can make cupcakes.

:D

The first, and only, episode I watched showed a bakery from Oregon (I believe) whose claim to fame was that they bake cupcakes using beer in their batter.

Fair enough.

The challenge?

Make something to celebrate the Girl Scouts of America 100th aniversary.

Want to bet what special secret ingredient they used?

Uh-huh, beer.

And those that say beer bakes out must have missed the episode of a much better Food Network show, Good Eats, where Alton Brown debunked that myth, and alcohol does NOT bake out of food, especially within 30 minutes.

Naturally, the bakers were shocked and dismayed that they were sent packing for trying to get little girls all liquored up!

Save your time, there's much better shows to watch or stream.

Final Grade: D+

The Best of 2014: The TV Shows

As 2014 draws to a close, it's time to take a look back at my favorite TV that I had the chance to view during the last 12 months.


While some of these shows might have been around for a season or two, they were all new to me, whether through finding them on cable or streaming through Netflix or Amazon.


So here's the 10 shows that rocked my world over the last year, in no real order, except for # 1.

:)

10) The Night That Changed America: A Grammy Salute to the Beatles

A Grammy special that highlighted the 50th Anniversary of the Fab Four. While I would have preferred an uncut performance from Paul and Ringo, overall, it was a night of great music and fond memories that paid respect to the band that changed the world forever.

9) Barbie: Life in the Dreamhouse


Seriously?
Yes.
Barbie is one of the funniest shows going today. Well written, hilarious, and voiced by some of the most perfectly cast voice actors, this show never fails to make me laugh.

Does it help to have young daughters that enjoy this show?
Sure.
Was I secretly excited when new episodes loaded to Netflix?
You betcha!!!


: )
 

8) Melissa and Joey
Formulaic romantic comedy family sitcom that you can figure out what's going to happen long before it actually happens.

Or, it's Who's The Boss? for a whole new generation!

And that's okay, because I enjoyed that show too.

Shouldered by the great chemistry between Lawrence and Hart, the show has been a pleasant addition to the streaming library of Netflix.

Naturally, the will they or won't they relationship plays out, amazingly quicker than I expected, but you know going in that these two will wind up together.

Again, that's okay, and they don't waste extra seasons stringing the show along, audience included.

7) Good Eats

Another late arrival for me, it was added to Netflix this fall, and I've enjoyed the 25 episodes I've seen.

The problem?

Apparently host Alton Brown has been offering this show for a decade, and I've only got a small handful of episodes to watch.

Frankly, I want more!

It's education, cooking, and fun all in one quick episode. 

What could be better?

How about more Alton Brown?

6) Cutthroat Kitchen

Brown returns as a host for a reality game show where 4 chefs are given 30 minutes to make a meal, and money to spend sabotaging each other to make sure that they win while their opponents lose.

It's genius, and it's evil.

I love to see some of the things they attempt to make to eat and under some of the worst conditions you could ever imagine having to deal with in the kitchen. 

Again, just a handful of episodes on Netflix, and I'm hoping for more.

Otherwise, I may have to start hunting down the Food Network to keep up.

5) Justified

Dear Amazon-

Please stream season 4 so I can watch it before the final season begins airing in January.

Thank you.

Seriously, decided to watch this one this year on Amazon, and was immediately sucked in.

Brilliant casting, great story and characters from Elmore Leonard.

Looking forward to the final season, but will be sad to see it go.

4) The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon

For the first time since Johnny Carson retired, I can watch the Tonight Show again.

Sorry, just never got the appeal of Jay Leno, so I stayed away and happily watched Letterman.

Fallon brings an energy and sense of fun to the show.

His games and skits with the guests is a breath of fresh air, and brings an extra layer to the show other than just celebrities shilling their latest movie/song or whatever.

Not bad.

Here's to at least as long of a run as Carson enjoyed!

3) Chuck

 

Add this to the list of shows that you'd think I would have watched during their course on tv, but no, it wasn't until it became available to stream on Netflix that I gave this one a whirl.

Loved it. 

I've only made it partway through the 2nd season, so I've still got time for the show to lose its appeal, but so far, so good!

 

2) Pushing Daisies

Wow, I would have really liked to see what else they had in store for this series, but alas, the writer's strike and apparently continued shuffling by the network quickly caused the demise of this show. 

Amazon had it streaming briefly this year, but has since pulled it.

I may actually spring for the complete series to be able to revisit this quirky and fun show whenever the mood strikes.

1) Psych

 

Okay, so maybe this is  cheat as I had seen Psych before this year.

However, I don't care.

This is my review blog, so I can make and change the rules as I see fit! 

:)

Psych goes out on top, a show that in my opinion, never jumped the shark.

8 seasons, and only a handful of episodes that we don't go "yes, let's watch that one again!!!" *Dual Spires, you are at the top of the list*

However, even the *worst* Psych episode was often better than the best episode of nearly any other show out there.

Well written, a superb cast and more fun packed into 43 minutes than should be legal for a television show.

Still waiting for Season 8 to be streamable, but until then, it's on my DVR and I own season 8 already. 

The final episode?

That's how tv shows like this should end.

By not ending.

Shawn and Gus are still out there, solving crimes...

We just don't get the luxury of seeing them do it.

For now....

 

 

Time to reset the clocks for next year, and see what 2015 has in store!

 

(I think I've already found my first choice!) 

 

Here's To A Delicious Weekend... "Good Eats"

Good Eats (1999)

Starring Alton Brown

Originally aired on the Food Network

The Story:

Alton Brown hosts a delightfully entertaining cooking show that is equal parts cooking, history, science and fun.

You'll learn a few things along the way, whether you intend to or not!

So apparently Netflix snapped up some episodes of shows from the Food Network.

I figured, why not?

It's just a bit over 21 minutes long, and sometimes a little short something is just what you need to unwind before bed, or just relaxing on the couch but you don't want to devote the full time that a movie demands.

After all, we enjoyed our episodes of Cake Boss, so let's see what this offers.

It's awesome!

Brown is a genial host.  Filled with facts and enthusiasm for what he does, Brown is filled with energy from start to finish on his show.

He offers up recipes both straightforward and easy to the challenging, but you see with just following a few simple steps, you too can cook like a chef!

That he infuses historical facts and science components in his explanations expands your overall cooking knowledge and appreciation for the magic that happens in the kitchen.

So far only 25 episodes are available for streaming on Netflix as of this writing.  It's not the first season, as Brown refers to other episodes in some of his discussions.

So far, I've seen no reason why these need to be in order, so feel free to jump right in.

I'm trying to take it one episode a day so I don't run out, but it would be so easy to just let them play.

As the show ran for over a decade, there's another 200+ episodes just waiting to be watched.

Dear Netflix,
Please, bring them!
:)

Final Grade: A-

Rewatchability/Purchase Factor: I would have no problem watching some of these again, but again, I'm hoping I get to see the other 225 or so episodes first!