I happened to be watching the Walt Disney Christmas Day Parade when I discovered that Flashpoint with Brendan McLaughlin — in which Big Mac “squares off†with news- and decision-makers to talk about the week's big stories — would be moved to the wee hours of the morning, after the Bucs game wrap-up. So, I did what any self-respecting DVR-owning person would do — I set the box to record. Twenty-four hours later, while perusing my recorded listings, I found it and watched gleefully, hoping to see something good. But aside from a few uncomfortable moments and lighting that made all the guests look pasty, the Flashpoint show co-starring Max Linsky wasn’t a bust. He didn’t give away the “surprise†ending and didn’t “fuck it up†like he said he did. Way to go, Max! 
This article appears in Dec 21-27, 2005.