… but not actually linked.  What up withat, Groucho?  Not very blogging-friendly of you to forgo the linkback!  Nonetheless, I enjoyed their review of Season 7, which was not crazy-glowing but certainly far from uncomplimentary, and it makes some very valid points in a very balanced way.  Highlights:

24 has always been uneven as it tries to keep the adventure alive and kicking through twenty-four episodes, but the early seasons had an undeniable vigor in their variations on a formula. Recent years, however, have understandably strained to sustain freshness, especially with a self-imposed mandate to twist the plot with double and triple-agent characters who betray loyalties from within CTU or the White House. Fan and critical griping came to a head with the widely-panned Season Six, so it was a blessing in disguise when the 2007-2008 Writer’s Strike halted preparations and caused a year-long delay for the Season Seven launch. With more time to “break” the story, the 24 team could begin filming from a place of relative confidence (though the show would shut down again, late in production, to rewrite a pivotal episode). (more …)

So … what the fuck is the point of a website devoted to Tony Almeida in a season of 24 that has no Tony Almeida?  I’ve been asking myself that same question since Carlos Bernard released the infamous statement on his website in November to the effect that he will by all reasonable and foreseeable estimates not be involved in the show’s 8th Season.  And you know what answer I came up with?  There isn’t one, really.  There is absolutely no point to a website devoted to Tony Almeida without Tony Almeida.  So I think my anger is split about evenly between being pissed that Tony won’t be in this season of the show and being pissed that the showrunners have rendered me irrelevant.

But that being said, I’ve been a 24 fan for a long time and this website has been such a big part of my life over the last six years that it seems wrong somehow to quit while the show is still on the air.  So I’m not quitting.  But, you ask, without Almeida, where will I get my inspiration?  That’s an excellent question, dear readers, and one that I haven’t been able to answer particularly optimistically.  24 snubbing Tony hurts, man!  The truth is that my inspiration well is looking a little dry and a little ragged at the moment.  I have serious qualms with the idea of devoting as much time or effort to 24 fandom online as I did last year since the news of No Tony came to light.  So I just want to give you guys an idea of what to expect from the site this season in terms of the features and content we had happening last year. (more …)

The amFar Celebrity Charity tournament at the PokerStars Caribbean Adventure, to raise money and awareness for AIDS/HIV, is underway LIVE NOW!!!!!  First hand was dealt about an hour ago.  Carlos Bernard is seated at Table 1 (the featured table) with Slash, Nelly, Kelly Rowland and Montel Williams.  As of this posting, Carlos is in 5th place with 8,950 in chips.  Top 2 finishers from each table continue through to the final table.

Update @ 9:37 PM — Carlos has made the final table after winning his preliminary table by a huge margin and is doing extremely well, having taken a commanding chip lead early in the tournament against opponents Montel Williams, Alex Gomes, Fatima De Melo, Luis Medina, Mats Sundin, Leo Fernandez and online qualifier Spencer Benjafield.

Additionally, PokerStars.tv’s excellent announcers have invited webcast viewers following the tournament to submit their remarks to nuts@pokerstars.tv for possible broadcast on the air.  I am FUCKING PSYCHED to inform you that I sent an e-mail to PokerStars.tv on behalf of myself, Matt (who is a huge Hold’em fan as well) and the many Carlos Bernard fans from AlmeidaIsGod.com wishing Carlos Bernard luck in the tournament, and it was read on the air right as Carlos was kicking ass in the final moments of the preliminary table.  I am soooooo excited about this!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (more …)

As you can see, I couldn’t hold my wad any longer and have gone live with the new site concept upgrade for the upcoming Season.  Although I am still working on some finishing touches, things are solid enough at this point that I am comfortable putting the new concept out into the world and tweaking as I go along, because maintaining two versions of the site with one in development was getting to be a little cumbersome.

I’d like to tell you about some new features that go along with the new iteration of the site that I hope will make everyone’s experience here better. (more …)

… and thankfully, we put to rest any confusion once and for all.  It all stops (and starts?) here. Deja vu.

Take a walk down memory lane and enjoy the fruits of our labours during AIG’s best year ever, in the form of my favourite articles and site milestones from the period leading up to and during Season 7. (more …)

Some excellent Tony “I’m choked up and on the verge of tears” caps in this set.  Screencaps for 7×04 are now up!

Slowly but surely I am picking away at the list of content that still needs to get updated on the site before the hiatus is over.  Screencaps for 7×03 is the latest addition, but don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten about Godlike Moments and Almeida Verbatim for the final 2 episodes.  It’s all coming down the pipe, but better VERY late than never, right?

I am pleased to annouce that one of my favourite members of The Open Channel and the comments gallery here on the main site has joined the ranks of AIG’s Official Contributors for the hiatus and upcoming Season 8.  Ian, better known to most of you as Captain_Typho, is a recent addition to the AIG Family, having only joined the site in Season 7, but quickly emerged as one of the more prominent voices in Critical Analysis in the community.  As an enthusiastic video production hobbyist, Ian will be flexing his multimedia muscles for AIG leading up to and during Season 8, so stay tuned for more frequent video content!  You can read more about Ian in his bio on the Official Contributors page.  Please join me in welcoming him to the team.

Exclusive photos from Avery’s coverage of the 24 Panel at Comic Con 2009 are now available in the Gallery.  Here is just a little taste of the fantastic shots she got … (more …)