It's time for another awkwardly adorable episode of your flavorite drinky thinky kitchen table comedy chat show! This week on This Just Out, Liz crushes hard, dares to be different and celebrates her friends in a totally platonic way, mostly. You'll meet a beautiful bisexual organizer named Fay and you'll be treated to the always rad recommendations of Raimy!

Then, Liz "interviews" Emily Deschanel (Bones) and things get pretty hot in the kitchen!

Liz is performing on Tuesday, June 3rd in Los Angeles, and then catch Liz performing live in NY in Julie Goldman's Offensive Women show on June 11th at the Slipper Room. Go to Liz's myspace page for all the info! Also, Liz's award-winning short film My First Time Driving is playing at NewFest in NY on June 14th. Go to newfest.org for tickets and info.

And to keep your finger in the v-hole of pop-culture visit Raimy's blog, muthafunka.blogspot.com.

By the end of today, the writers' strike should be officially over. I think we can all breathe a deep sigh of relief that the nightmare scenario of MILF Island, America’s Next Top Pirate and Are You Smarter Than a Dog? never came to fruition. Can I get a halle-freaking-lujah? Sure, the strike’s end means we’ll no longer get to see adorable shots of Tina Fey and others on the picket line. But I’ll gladly sacrifice a little photogenic solidarity for fresh episodes of my favorite shows. Pending a final vote today from Writers Guild of America members, scripted shows could begin production Wednesday. Of course, now you’re all thinking, but when? When will my show be back?

Well, don’t get mad when I tell you this, but you’re going to have to be a bit more patient. According to The New York Times, it takes at least of four weeks to get a 30-minute comedy completed from scratch and six to eight weeks for hour-long dramas. So that means, realistically, it will be mid-March or early April when new episodes start to flood the airwaves again. But they are coming. While some shows have already abandoned the rest of their seasons, others will be back for anywhere from four to ten new episodes.

The New York Times and TV Guide have made comprehensive lists of returning shows. Let’s run through some of the AfterEllen.com-friendly offerings together, shall we?

30 Rock: Five to ten more shows to air April/May. Thank God; life without Liz Lemon was one big blerg.

Battlestar Galactica: The first half of the final season begins April 4. Production on the second half could start in March, with an airdate not yet set.

Bionic Woman: According to TV Guide, “No new episodes expected. Ever.” Oh, Sarah Corvus, I think I’ll miss you most of all. … continue reading

Whenever I see someone with one of those “Kill Your Television” bumper stickers, I feel two distinct emotions. One, shut up, Smuggy McSmugerson. I bet you don’t read the copies of The New Yorker in your bathroom either. And two, yeah, sometimes I do feel like taking a 12-gauge to the old idiot box. This year I got my usual mix of joy and pain from my television. The highs were so very fantastic. The lows so very sucktastic. Here's a rundown of my top and bottom five TV shows for 2007.

Five I Loved:

1) 30 Rock: Everything about this show, well, rocks. It’s smart, funny, geeky and good to the gays — just like its creator, Tina Fey. She is the antidote to the mediocrity that keeps trying to choke our culture into submission. This show alone is reason enough to own a television. … continue reading

Spoiler Alert: If you haven’t watched last night’s episode of Bones, stop reading or don’t blame me when I ruin the surprise. OK, are they gone? Great, cause we’ve got to talk. So, was it good for you? The inevitable happened on Bones last night as Brennan and Booth had their first kiss. The show’s Christmas episode made good use of mistletoe for the silly yet surprisingly sweet installment.

Sure, the kiss wasn’t exactly passionate. Or romantic. Or done of their own free will. But Emily Deschanel and David Boreanaz still played it off pretty perfectly, mixing stoic professionalism with confused chemistry. And the gum thing was priceless. … continue reading

You know when you're having one of those WLT days? No, not a craving for a wombat, lettuce and tomato sandwich — 'cause, ewww. No, I mean a Wishful Lesbian Thinking day. Well, I had one of those the other day when I read the plot description for the new film The Private Lives of Pippa Lee. Robin Wright Penn, Winona Ryder and Julianne Moore have signed on to star in the new drama which, according to Variety, is about Pippa, “a dutiful wife whose husband falls for a younger woman, freeing her to explore her buried sensuality and leading to a very quiet nervous breakdown.” Robin plays Pippa, Winona plays the younger woman, and Julianne plays a place Pippa explores her buried sexuality ... hopefully. See, ain't WLT delicious?

Now, I'm not sure if this case of WLT will pan out. My gay Spidey sense says yes, especially after reading this plot description. But even without a payoff, this is the kind of thinking that has launched a million shippers sites. There are the gold standards (Xena and Gabrielle), the wishful turned wish fulfilled (Willow and Tara) and the just plain awesome (Daria and Jane).

So with that, I thought I'd share a few more of my most recent WLT daydreams, culled from current TV and film. … continue reading

In this episode, Lori and I discuss the week's Best Lesbian TV Moments That Actually Were (for a change!); the Best Halloween Episode (Bones); Kathy Griffin's new E! True Hollywood Story, and why we would never, ever go on The Amazing Race.

Plus we ponder the all-important question: what type of woman does Angela (Michaela Conlin) go for?

Leave your guesses in the comments below! … continue reading

It’s T-minus seven days to Halloween weekend, and you know what that means, right? It means that it’s time to find a costume. But before you grab that bed sheet and just pass yourself off as Casper again, why not take a cue from the stars instead? Look, wasn’t it nice of Bones stars Emily Deschanel/Wonder Woman and Michaela Conlin/Cher (with Catwoman Tamara Taylor hiding in the background) to model their outfits in advance for us?

It’s easier to look like a famous star than you might think. Here is a quick do-it-yourself guide to dressing up like your favorite celebrity this Halloween, complete with a handy checklist of supplies you’ll need for each look. … continue reading

For couch potatoes in the States, this week kicks off a courting period with our televisions. This week, the new and returning shows start premiering in all their finery in hopes of winning a spot on our dance card for the season. Who will stay and who will go? Well, much like real dating, for some it will take repeat viewings, and for others it will only take that first episode to know whether they’re all right or all wrong. I though I’d share my dating watching game plan for the new season. Yes, even the embarrassing stuff. I'm sticking to mostly broadcast though, 'cause cable is way too embarrassing. Yes, I'm talking to you, The Girls Next Door.

MONDAY:
8 p.m.: Chuck (NBC) I’m going to give this computer geek and the CIA superspy odd-couple comedy a shot. I’m not in love with its cutsie premise, but what the hell, it’s Monday. Why not? And that’s it. I don’t watch Heroes. I know, audible gasp. While you’re at it, go ahead and gasp some more — I don’t watch Lost either. … continue reading

With so many interesting new fall TV shows debuting now, Lori and I decided to structure our vlog a little differently moving forward. Rather than a lengthy review of each show, we're just going to hit the highlights of the week in TV and film, organized into the following categories:

Rapid-fire Reviews (kinda like The McLaughlin Report, but gay)
Gaying up Primetime (the best lesbian moment that wasn't)
Who thought that was a good idea? (the rant)
The Casting Couch (cool new film or TV casting news)
AfterEllen.com Soundbites (funny comments on the site about TV and film)
What to Watch (our pick of what's coming up on TV and at the theaters)

Among the TV topics we cover this week are the premieres of Top Model, K-Ville, and Survivor: China; our love of Bones; the revamped Bionic Woman pilot; and Gossip Girl's lesbian moment that wasn't.

We also discuss Zoe Saldana in the new Star Trek movie, what's wrong with the trailer for the upcoming movie The Kingdom, and why Lori plans to see Resident Evil: Extinction (opening this weekend).

… continue reading

Plus, a special appearance by Sydney Bristow, and Lori gets in trouble for revealing how much I like the cheesy ballet movie Center Stage (2000).

I love crime procedurals. They require just enough brain power to keep me interested but not so much that I need a flow chart and CliffsNotes from the previous week to keep up. Also, I love it when smart women in lab coats squint at things.

So I was interested to see these new promo shots for the third season of Bones. I’ve watched, on and off, since the first season and have enjoyed the sexy-meets-silly-and-marries-smart chemistry between Dr. Temperance Brennan (Emily Deschanel) and Special Agent Seeley Booth (David Boreanaz). The pair is like the love child of Scully/Mulder and Maddie/David (from Moonlighting; please be old enough to remember Moonlighting).

Now, in the interest of full disclosure, one of the cast members is the sibling of one of my close friends, so I could be biased. But I think the show has really come into its own and found a happy place between hardcore crime drama and whimsical romantic comedy. Plus, as a Buffy and Angel fan, I’m eternally inclined to root for David. And, well, getting to stare at Emily every week doesn’t hurt either. … continue reading