Crazy in love or just plain crazy?

Never mind the War of the Worlds premiere this Wednesday, there's a different alien grabbing headlines these days: Tom Cruise. By using that term, I'm not making references to the movie star's Scientology faith, but rather his bizarre behavior in the few months that have passed since his relationship with actress, Katie Holmes first became public. I've always been a Tom Cruise fan. His characters have always inspired me, made me laugh and given me the desire to carry the same bold confidence in myself that they display on the big screen. But even the most devoted of Tom Cruise fans has to be a little frightened by his present actions, comments and overall persona. Let's be honest, whoever this guy is walking around representing Tom Cruise is a far cry from the Jerry Maguire we all know and love. So is it really his love for Katie? Is it all a performance meant to drum up publicity for the release of his latest blockbuster? Or, has the guy really gone off the deep end amidst a mid-life crisis? Perhaps the answers to these questions lie inside the events themselves that have brought us to the point of wondering "what's wrong with dear, old Tom". Let's take a look at the timeline…

Late April:
Rumors emerge that the talented Mr. Cruise is dating Joey from Dawson's Creek (let's be honest, that's how most people know her, now isn't it?). Soon, these rumors are squashed with the cold hard truth that, yes the two are in fact a couple. "A couple of what?" is the first reaction many of us experience. After all, last we heard Tom and Penelope Cruz were an item, while Katie was passing time with beau (now former beau), Chris Klein. Besides, Tom's considerably older than she, but love knows no age so we slowly accept the reality of it all. Pretty soon, their mugs appear everywhere, except the outside of a 7-Eleven Slurpee cup. The two are frequently locked together at the lips, as they make no secret about, almost promote, the way they "allegedly" feel about each other. I use the word allegedly, because most of America still finds the entire situation unbelievable. Soon the "publicity stunt" rumors begin to circulate. Skeptics begin inferring that the two are hooking up merely to promote their upcoming Summer blockbusters, which, of course, leads to the first of Tom's many unusual antics.

May 23
Apparently, hearing enough nonsense that he's not truly in live, Tom embarks on a mission to set the record straight by appearing on the Oprah show and participating in a nonsensical, almost idiotic to some, display of his affection for the fair Miss Holmes. Cruise fans breathe a sigh of relief in one regard in that his arm pumps and jerky leg kicks do in fact resemble the old Jerry Maguire we are so used to. Unfortunately, it wouldn't last long, as Tom receives tremendous ridicule by the media for his performance. But, on the bright side, many people now believe that he and Katie are really in love. Well, at least his fellow scientologists.

May 26
Tom decides to implement a ploy to take some of the attention away from his love life by attacking Brooke Shields. He scolds Brooke for using Paxil to fight her depression after giving birth to her daughter. Sure, Tom. Being a man, I'm sure you understand the postpartum experience better than most of us, including women. However, not sure this is the right way to go about promoting your new movie. The comments escalate into an all-out war of words between the two. But, I guess it could be worse. At least he said that Brooke "is an incredibly talented woman". Of course, he also implied that her career was over right after that. Yikes!

Shortly thereafter, Katie Holmes announces that she is converting to Scientology. A Catholic girl dropping her faith to convert to the beliefs of the man she loves. And Tom's calling Brooke Shields weak? Go figure. But Cruise tells the media "the thing you've got to know about Katie is that she's an incredibly bright and self-determined woman. She makes her own decisions." With this, more rumors arise that Tom allegedly insisted that Katie turn down a role in the upcoming "Factory Girls" because she would have played a drug-addicted woman, and he apparently is a practicing anti-drug advocate. Still believe Katie makes her own decisions? Right.

June 17
The couple's relationship takes huge strides as the two become engaged atop the Eiffel Tower in Paris. Both claim they have never been happier, and the duo celebrates with a romantic dinner for four – Tom, Katie and the parents of his former lover, Penelope Cruz. Now, I'm no Hitch, but don't you think dinner with the old flame's folks is an odd way to welcome the beginning of one's life together. Witnesses say that Katie is rather quiet during the entire meal. Really? You know, that seems strange, because if I were to dine with the parents of my wife's ex, I'm sure I would be a regular chatterbox.

June 19
Just when you think it's safe to turn on CNN again, he strikes yet once more. During a War of the Worlds premiere, Tom is the victim of a local television show prank, getting squirted in the face by a water-shooting microphone. At first he laughs at the incident, but then almost Jekyll-and-Hyde like, he concludes with a lecture for the prankster, publicly labeling the guy a "jerk". Can you just imagine Tom's reaction if he was to ever get Punk'd? Are you listening, Ashton?

June 20
As if it couldn't get any stranger, sources report that Cruise treated actress, Scarlett Johansson, to a tour of the Church of Scientology. Seems everything was peachy until Tom put her on the spot with a surprise dinner invite amongst all of the church's elders. Scarlett finds the entire situation a little too awkward and politely declines, then exits. Well, "exits" is probably an understatement. My guess is she ran like hell once she hit the front door. Apparently, Cruise thought he was playing David Koresh in his next major film and wanted to get a jump on becoming the role.

June 22
Cruise publicly discusses the water-in-the-face incident by stating "There are bullies, people who like to make people feel less and feel bad. Those people need to be confronted. I have never felt something like that is funny." So now, in addition to being a movie star, producer, anti-depressant expert and Scientology rep, Tom is a super hero. Well, I for one can sleep much easier knowing that he will be there to defend me should I be squirted in the face by a gag mic.

June 24
Cruise adds Psychiatrist to his resume as he debates Today show host, Matt Lauer, on the effects of drugs and the human psyche. Lauer claims he knows individuals who were helped by Ritalin, at which point Cruise responds with "Matt, Matt, you don't even -- you're glib. You don't even know what Ritalin is. If you start talking about chemical imbalance, you have to evaluate and read the research papers on how they came up with these theories, Matt, OK. That's what I've done." Wow, this guy just does it all, doesn't he.

That brings us to the here and now, anxiously awaiting Mr. Cruise's next move. To be honest, I, personally, have found the entire journey with Tom to be fascinating. I routinely scan the news headlines each morning hoping that the time bomb we call Cruise has gone off again. But you see, that's just it. As weird as his behavior may be, Tom Cruise is keeping himself at the forefront of the minds of every potential movie ticket buyer out there. Is he doing it on purpose? I don't know. Heck, he probably doesn't even know. But, if it's media he wants, it is working. It may not all be good, but he is still grabbing headlines and, in the end, that will bring people into the theater to see his movie.

Me? Well, I may check it out. I will admit I am a little intrigued. Man vs Alien in one final battle on Earth. You just have to ask yourself…after all of the antics we've witnessed over the past two months…which side of the war is Tom really on?