(S08E16) The pressure of writing the last episode must be tremendous. Especially for a long-running show like Monk. The writers have to tie up loose ends, satisfy viewers' desire for the characters, and leave fans with a sense of closure. Closure, in fact, is the word Dr. Bell used with Adrian. Monk was looking for it and so were we.

But the ending is tough. There have been some shows that have stumbled badly at the end. Seinfeld, for instance, was a real stinker. But the memory of Newhart, which harkened back to The Bob Newhart Show may be the best-ever. Now, in the broader scheme of things, Seinfeld was a much better series than Newhart; in every way but the ending. Which brings us back to Monk. How did the writers navigate the Monk finale? Follow me after the jump and I'll tell you all about it.

I watched The Oprah Winfrey Show yesterday to see the one on one between two of the most powerful and influential women in America. Whether you're a fan of Oprah Winfrey or Sarah Palin, there was no doubt that they command a large chunk of public opinion. How could I not see what they would be like in an interview setting?

My impression was that they both were completely civil and reserved. I didn't pick up the makings of a great friendship, not that that was likely considering Oprah's support for President Obama.

Still, what I found interesting was that if you read the body language experts, they're reporting that Sarah was not nervous. They're coming to that conclusion based on her ability to control her blinking. Over-blinking mean you're agitated and a normal blink per minute rate -- 30-40 blinks -- is normal. Sarah was blinking normally.

Well, you sort of knew that this was coming, didn't you? The mother of balloon boy, Mayumi Heene, has admitted it was a hoax. The Heenes knew that Falcon wasn't in the balloon, that he was hiding in the garage. The entire boy in the balloon fiasco was a hoax from the get-go. Her court affidavit confirms what everyone has suspected.

So, this was just another desperate attempt by the family to get on television. Honestly, have you ever heard anything so ridiculous?

I say that because if these parents have even a scintilla of sense, couldn't they have projected what was going to happen when the balloon came down? Couldn't they have seen that there was no pot of gold at the end of the rainbow?

You've probably seen the Burger King ads featuring race car driver Tony Stewart. One of the ads said that Stewart was going to undergo a lie-detector test to find out whether or not he really, really liked the Whopper. I have no idea how they came up with this or why a lie detector should be the final decision-maker when it comes to whether someone likes Burger King or not (everyone knows that lie detectors aren't admissible in a fast food court of law, ever since that case against the Hamburgler was thrown out).

Anyway, the results are in. Let's just say that Stewart likes Whoppers but he lies about a lot of other things.

[via Adfreak]

I watched a TV show years ago that showed you how to beat a polygraph test, if you're ever in the situation where you need to beat a polygraph. Next Thursday's Penn & Teller: Bullshit! is titled "Lie Detectors," and here's a preview. It shows a married couple going to a lie detector specialist because the wife thinks that the husband might be cheating on her. Ah, love.

Have you been watching Lie To Me? When it was announced, a lot of people immediately thought of The Mentalist, but this seems to be a different show. Last night's episode had ER's Mekhi Phifer as an FBI agent helping on a case. Discuss the episode here. Is there anyone out there who watches both The Mentalist and Lie To Me? Which is better? Here's the episode (or at the link above).

Like most people, I had to tell a white lie here and there. I think I was pretty good at controlling my facial expressions and body language so not to have people discover that I just told a lie. However, I doubt I would be able to control myself enough when trying to lie in front of cameras and a few million viewers.

The idea of a game show requiring contestants to lie is nothing original. Nonetheless, NBC decided to get its own "lie detector" game show. Yep, it seems we, the viewers, will want to watch this type of TV quiz/games in the coming months since FOX and ABC will also have their own "lie or bluffing" game show titled Nothing But The Truth and Duel respectively.