The original Men in Black was lighting-in-a-bottle good: Jones, Smith, D'Onofrio, Fiorentino, Shalhoub. The sequels couldn't recapture or top it.

My favorite Christmas song is "Sleigh Ride" instrumental or as covered by Debbie Gibson.

I also fancy Shambhala.

Everyone is helpful. Everyone is kind.

I will say I once went to Disney World in December, and it was a nice break from the NY cold. Don't need to do it every year, though.

As sunny places go, Hawaii is hard to beat. Sunset at like 7pm year round.

In short, there's simply not a more congenial spot...

But the walking is part of the fun.

Yeah. I don't believe you.

Maybe that's why I'm not big on Christmas movies, all staged, and of course the characters end up happy. It's the Most Wonderful Time of the Year (TM), just like Disney is the Happiest Place on Earth (TM).

Disney is too much walking to be fun when I finally get where I'm going.

Most welcome. I also really like a twist I left out of the review b/c it felt spoilery, but it added a dynamic I didn't expect. This one really feels above the average series novel. I'm guessing you felt more freedom w/ BIG SHOT, having established your cred w/ BURIED SECRETS.

I only mean we knew how Gibbs winds up, and knowing that makes him less appealing to me. The other characters - Lala, Randy, Mary Jo, Wheeler - are more unknown quantities, naturally more appealing to me.

Anyone else watch NCIS: ORIGINS for every character except Gibbs?

I get why the NCISLA episodes did next to nothing w/ Harm and Mac. Here are characters w/ their own show for 9 seasons and you're going to resolve their story 20 years later on a 2-part episode of a show JAG's audience may not be watching?

I wonder if NCIS: ORIGINS will have a episode w/ Young Rabb in TOPGUN, which was in San Diego until 1996. He could appear w/o meeting Gibbs so as not to break continuity.

I dislike shows where characters marrying is shown as the pinnacle of their evolution. Slightly worse are shows that keep apart characters who have good chemistry. If you never pay off that chemistry, it fizzles out.

I personally thought Harm and Mac's relationship was dragged out to the point it felt forced. More TV coworkers who keep it platonic, please. (Will never happen, I know.)