Linky goodness

While I wait with baited breath for the arrival of new television (and not, for instance, last night’s episode of I Get That A Lot where Rachel Ray pretends to work in a laundry mat and then assures disbelieving customers that she is not actually Rachel Ray), I present you with a few things for your reading and viewing pleasure.

• Yesterday, Linda Holmes posted a great blog piece on her NPR TV blog Monkey See about the changes that have occurred on The Big Bang Theory over the past three seasons. The bottom line, for Holmes, is that Penny is transformed from the mere object of a male gaze in the beginning to a thinking, laughing, functioning human being later in the show. It’s really worth a read, and a great example of how seemingly silly academic cliches like the “male gaze” can actually go a long way toward explicating vague ideas like “The Big Bang Theory is way better than it used to be, but I’m not really sure what’s different.”
• The People’s Choice Awards were last night. I did not watch, but apparently the people are largely in favor of things to do with vampires.
• I’m still stuck on the David Tennant era of Doctor Who, and how much I’ll miss his odd face, awesome overcoat, and nerd glasses. I’ll also miss his willingness to do things like this:
• In case you’re not really up on your technology news, there’s a big conference going on in Las Vegas this week to announce all sorts of exciting gadgets and proof-of-concept devices like a see-through screen and ereaders and…3D television?
• New television is coming back, and along with the deluge of new shows and returning classics, we will soon get the triumphant premiere of the final season of Lost. The first new episode will be on February 2nd. Unless, that is, the White House decides that February 2nd would be a good day to hold President Obama’s first State of the Union address, which is one of its two possible dates. Heh.