Shaken, Not Stirred

Bruce Boxleitner was my first TV boyfriend!

Real truth: I love spy shows. It all began with a little show called Scarecrow & Mrs. King (80's gold!), which my mom and I watched when I was a kid. I'm a total scaredy cat and shy away from horror movies, but that's why I love intrigue and thrillers so much - they provide the adrenaline rush without scaring the bejeezus out of me. 

I'm sure there were plenty of them on the air, but I don't remember watching many spy shows in the 90's. My sister rekindled my love when she introduced me to Alias. I'm not proud of this, but I inhaled all 5 seasons of Alias in less than a month. It was the end of my senior year of college, I didn't sleep (if you've seen the show, you understand how difficult it is to end on a cliffhanger...and there is one in every.single.episode), and I became slightly paranoid that everyone around me had an "end game" (see sleep deprivation). Sydney Bristow was my hero (such a badass), and as Netflix is fond of telling me, I like shows with "strong female leads". Warning, should you choose to watch this show, be prepared to perhaps lose your sanity a tiny bit. It's worth it, I promise!

Sara also introduced me to USA, which has THE BEST summer spy shows. Among my favorites are Burn Notice (spy gets a "burn notice" placed on his record - chaos ensues), Psych ("psychic" detective joins the Santa Barbara PD with pal Gus - chaos ensues), Covert Affairs (Annie Walker joins the CIA - chaos ensues), and new this season, Graceland (the best of the best from various law enforcement agencies all live together at "Graceland" where they take down the baddies, one at a time....and of course, chaos ensues).

Other favorites include Veronica Mars (a sassy and sarcastic high school detective) , Chuck (underachieving nerd unintentionally gets an "intersect" placed in his head, which makes him a valuable asset to the government. I loved this one at the beginning...it went a little downhill after season 2, but it's still worth checking out), Castle (a writer and cop form an unlikely partnership to solve crimes), Homeland (Homeland Security works to stop terrorist attacks. This one is dark and a little tough, but sooooooo good), and Fringe (too hard to explain. This is quite possibly one of the weirdest and at times, grossest, shows I have seen. But it's also kind of genius. Don't watch if you have a weak stomach!). This list only includes TV shows. I'll have to save the movie list for another post. I could tell you what might be on that list, but then I'd have to kill you. :)

I greatly appreciate the escape from reality and the wonderful stories these shows provide. I also find it fascinating to delve into lives of characters so incredibly different than me. And let's be real, when Charlie recruits me to be an Angel, I'm going to need to rely on all the valuable knowledge I've gleaned from these shows. It could happen...