In Plain Sight, "Trojan Horst": Mary vs. Pure Evil

Brief spoilers for the latest episode of "In Plain Sight" coming up just as soon as I play a few rounds of Stargate Defender...

Who would have thought that the episode with Dave Foley as guest star would be one of the less overtly comic episodes of the series?

Don't get me wrong: Foley brought the snark with his role as Horst, alleged man Friday to elite hitwoman Lola (but actually Lola him/herself), and the idea of Foley playing someone with a female alter ego is especially funny if you remember how good he used to look when he'd dress up as a woman.

But "Trojan Horst" was more action movie than farce, the show's take on the classic Howard Hawks/John Wayne Western "Rio Bravo," about three law men holed up with a prisoner while his posse tries to liberate him by force. (The original movie proved so adaptable that it's been copied countless times, including twice by Hawks and Wayne themselves.)

And on that level, with Marshall wounded but still fighting, and Mary doing everything possible to keep her partner alive without giving up her charge, the episode worked. I have some issues with the last act, as it seemed awfully easy for Mary to get Horst's people to drop their guns, and for Mary and Stan to catch up to Horst after getting Marshall some medical attention, but overall, I liked it. I'm just a sucker for scenes like the one where a bloody Marshall pulls himself off the ground and starts shooting at the bad guys to protect the far healthier Mary.

However, I'm more than ready to see Mary's family go away forever. That won't happen this season (I've seen an episode that airs in mid-July, and mom and sis are still in the picture), but lord does the show grind to a halt whenever we have to deal with those two.

What did everybody else think?

Benson Gets Cool Gadget

From the Associated Press:

AUSTIN � Former Chicago Bears running back Cedric Benson has been ordered to install an ignition lock breathalyzer in his car.

Benson will have to take a breathalyzer test every time he gets behind the wheel of his car. Otherwise the thing won't start. One question though, how do I get one of those things for my phone? Imagine how much easier your life would be if you were able to attach a breathalyzer lock to prevent drunk dialing? Or even -- and this probably is more important to me -- prevent drunk texting.

You could probably even get on attached to your computer, too. But if that was the case, THN would never get published.

Everything is a situation: George Carlin, R.I.P.

Legendary comedian George Carlin has died of heart failure at 71. Carlin's probably my biggest hero as a comic, someone whom I didn't always agree with, but who always argued his points with such conviction -- as he once put it, "I don't have pet peeves. I have major psychotic fucking hatreds." -- and seemingly impenetrable logic that I couldn't help but laugh.

I frequently quote his philosophy that any topic, no matter how sensitive or despicable, can be made into a joke, as he demonstrates in his routine about how rape can be funny. As he put it, the trick is how you construct the joke and what the exaggeration is.

I also loved Carlin's obsession with the misuse of language. His routine about the 7 words you can't say on television (which pay cable and "NYPD Blue" rendered obsolete) is his most famous, but his material about non-profane language could be just as funny.

I may be asked to write something longer for the paper, so I need to head into the office early. In the meantime, some other good bits of Carlin you can watch or listen to:

• His hatred of airport security (pre-9/11)
• Baseball vs. football
• Why we don't need all 10 Commandments
• Things you never see
• The importance of stuff
• Carlin on death