TVSquad

Galactica Sitrep reports that the Sci Fi Channel webisodes of Battlestar Galactica that will appear next month (titled "The Face of the Enemy") will bring two recurring characters out of the closet. The two characters are revealed in the comments on that site but I will wait until after the jump so that nobody claws out my eyes from spoiler rage.

With only 10 episodes remaining in the entire series, it's amazing that it even has any surprises left.

From gangsters and serial killers, it looks like cable television is preparing to tackle another adult subject: superheroes (or rather, homosexuality in the guise of superheroes). Showtime, along with Stan Lee's Pow! Entertainment, will be producing a series about a gay superhero. The series is based on the book "Hero" by Perry Moore.

Superhero secret identities have been used as analogies for closeted homosexuals before (the most obvious example I can think of is from the second X-Men movie in which Iceman's mom asks "have you considered not being a mutant?"). As a result, I think the concept holds some promise.

My biggest issue with this announcement is the involvement of Stan Lee. While I appreciate everything he's done for the comic industry and media entertainment, his ideas are kind of old-fashioned at this stage of the game. Still, if the show has the depth of other Showtime series such as Californication or Dexter, I'll be impressed.

Recently, Paul mentioned that the ombudsman for children's television in Poland had come out against the Teletubbies, and Tinky Winky specifically, for promoting homosexuality.

To be fair, the comment about Teletubbies promoting homosexuality was brought up by journalists during a magazine interview, and ombudsman Ewa Sowinska replied by saying that, due to the "purse" carried by Tinky Winky, she would investigate these claims. I say "to be fair" not to defend Sowinska exactly, but just to point out that she was responding to claims made by others. Still, that doesn't quite explain how holding a "purse," or "money bag," or whatever the hell that thing is, equals being gay. I think someone needs to go back to Gay School and learn a lot more about that specific sexual orientation.

Isaiah Washington sure is involved in a lot of extra-curricular activities lately, thanks to his unstoppable mouth. He's working hard to save his job as Dr. Burke on Grey's Anatomy, after pissing off co-workers and offending gays everywhere with his derogatory comments about co-star T.R. Knight.

After visiting with gay activists last week and agreeing to be in PSAs (public service announcements), today he announced that he has entered counseling to deal with his bigoted view of the world anger toward homosexuals. In a statement, Washington said, "I remain committed to transforming my negative actions into positive results, personally and professionally." Grey's producer Shonda Rhimes released her own statement, applauding Washington for taking corrective action for his "behavioral issues", which makes it sound like he has a whole laundry list of issues.

(S03E01) OK, I know I sound like a broken record, but The Office is hands down the best sitcom on television. If this season's first episode is not considered an instant classic, then there's something really wrong going on here.

"6/6/06": "The day of the devil? Or... regular numerical seeeequence?" Cue the thunder and twitchy eyebrows. Multiple news networks wouldn't shut up about the possibility of impending doom. Some even felt the need to explain the significance of the day, reporting that some people believed that bad things would happen on 6/6/06... "bad things like the Apocalypse". No, no. Losing your keys is bad... The Apocalypse is, well, shitty. "Shitty" went un-bleeped. I'm seriously getting more and more confused as to when bleeping is necessary. Aaanyway...

Mandisa, who was voted off American Idol this week, is responding to criticism that she's anti-gay. In her bio on the FOX/Idol website, Mandisa mentions her strong Christian faith and praises Beth Moore, of Living Proof Ministries. Moore's website has all sorts of links to various organizations in the ex-gay movement, or Christian organizations that seek to reverse homosexuality. Naturally, some folks thought that meant Mandisa was supportive of groups that try to turn gay people into straight people.

Mandisa told Advocate magazine that she does not support the groups, is not anti-gay, and believes in treating people as she would want to be treated. But, she also said she would not perform at an event held in support of the gay community.

You see what I did? I took the "you're out" catchphrase from Project Runway and made it about homosexuality! Applaud me for my cleverness! ... Okay, don't. On to my point: The fashion industry has plenty of gay designers (shock, surprise) so it's not that startling to see more than a few on a reality show about fashion design. This season, there were a few brief discussions about sexual orientation, including some stories that let us better understand and appreciate the designers (like Daniel Vosovic's background and how accepting his parents were when he finally came out). Well, I was reading this article/interview with some of the designers about sex advice (I swear, a friend sent this to me) and was surprised to read that Zulema (aka She-tangi) is a lesbian. A married one, at that.

When you tune in to an original series on HBO, Showtime, Cinemax, etc., you pretty much know that the subject matter will be much more "adult" and less shocking so you can focus on the storyline itself.

The Book of Daniel on NBC is different. I can't quite figure out if I'm watching this show because the storyline itself is interesting or that the producers and writers are interested in shocking network television viewers and we're all giggling over what they're able to get away with. It sort of reminds me of a daytime soap on extra-strength steroids.

This week we saw Reverend Daniel Webster's son Adam sneaking off to be with his girlfriend Caroline Paxton who was placed in the Queens Cross Preparation School by her parents as a method to keep her away from him. Adam ends up missing the groundbreaking of Daniel's pet project, the St. Barnabus school, which is being built by the mob-connected Vaporelli Brothers construction company.

In the last episode, it was learned that the Websters don't really own their home--Judith (Daniel's wife) finds out that her domineering mother still holds the deed to the house. As a result, the family could use some extra cash, and she decides to go back to work as a political consultant for Daniel's brother Worth who, interestingly, has asked her to marry him years ago. Meanwhile, we see that Nora Paxton, who has expressed extreme dissatisfaction over Adam and Caroline's romance, is spying on them from another part of the restaurant.