Game of Thrones Is Coming (Part III)

With less than a day until the Season Two premiere of Game of Thrones, here is our last clip, which reminds us of the furious vengeance with which "The North Remembers." Although apparently it still doesn't remember how to laugh. They must not get Community there.







I got goosebumps.

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Wrath of the Titans

I can sum up my opinion of this movie fairly simply -- it's a total popcorn movie. Grand spectacle, cool action, excellent special effects, heroes to root for, but absolutely and completely momentary. I don't think anyone should go into this movie and expect it to be anything other than a swords and sandals swashbuckling good time.

Let's start with the gods. They may not have quite the kick-ass coolness of last year's Immortals, but they are still pretty awesome. Ralph Fiennes (Hades) and Liam Neeson (Zeus) get to chew the scenery again and provide most of the exposition for what little plot there is. They also get to show their godly abilities by literally throwing around their power with CGI goodness. Sam Worthington (Perseus) is a little more believable this time around. In the last movie, I think he came down with a serious case of tree acting, probably left over from his Terminator role. This time he's quite a bit warmer, possibly because he has some actual chemistry with Rosamund Pike, who replaces Alexa Davalos as Andromeda for some Hollywood casting reason.

The general quest formula is almost thrown in for the heck of it. Maybe it's because this is such a short film, but they waste no time whatsoever getting from point to point. They introduce characters one minute and kill them off the next. MacGuffins are thrown into the mix, and then discarded as irrelevant a few scenes later. I kept thinking that if they added half an hour, we might have actually cared whether certain characters died. Maybe that's the entire problem with the film: it's way too truncated. Still, I'm not entirely sure if it matters.

I suppose one could argue that a movie must have plot and character to be worthy of viewing. Yet I got engrossed by the gloss, could easily root for the likeable characters, knew who the villains were, and didn't leave the theater regretting the time spent watching it. Will it win any awards? Maybe for visual effects, but probably not.

So I'll keep this review as brief as the movie. If you liked the trailers, or like heavy action popcorn movies, or if you liked Clash of the Titans, then I'd recommend Wrath of the Titans for a fun and diverting time.

2.5 out of 4 Godly weapons that when combined can destroy anything!!!

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Community: Digital Exploration of Interior Design

“To be continued.”

Community has a habit of revisiting ideas from previous episodes and expanding upon them in more bizarre and inventive ways. Last season they gave us a second paintball war in 'A Fistful of Paintballs/For a Few Paintballs More' and remixed Spaghetti Westerns with Star Wars. And early this season they took another stab at documentaries with 'Documentary Filmmaking: Redux'. Now comes 'Digital Exploration of Interior Design', which takes the blanket fort idea from 'Conspiracy Theories and Interior Design' and takes it a whole lot further. This time around we had a blanket fort and an exceptionally well designed pillow fort, which is way different so no one can be accused of repeating themselves.

Fort Wars: Episode I – The Pillow Menace 

Evil Vice-Dean John Goodman was back, now with a goatee and a ponytail. If he wasn't evil enough before, he sure as hell is now. Only evil twins for evil universes have goatees. And only evil henchmen from 80s actions movies have ponytails (nice braids, though). Inbetween band practice, he had sights set firmly on Troy and Abed. He's determined to drive them apart so that Troy will join the Air Conditioning School. I know I said last week that I wasn't happy about a rift developing between Troy and Abed. Well, I'm still not happy about it, but even that won't stop me being excited about an all out war between Abed's pillow fort and Troy's blanket fort. War is hell. But it makes for great TV.

Using his surprisingly extensive knowledge of Inspector Spacetime, the Vice-Dean set about playing Iago to Troy and Abed's Othello and Desdemona (I'll let you decide which is which) or Spike to their Scooby Gang. But I think the he will find that Tory and Abed's bond is a lot stronger than he realises. Ideological differences on fort building (and Guinness World Records) might have driven them apart for now, but I have faith that they will soon reunite, stronger than ever before. I mean, they have to. They are Troy and Abed. They can't fall out for good. They just can't. 

2+2 = Subway 

Trust Community to make better use of it's corporate sponsor in one episode than Chuck ever managed during it's entire run.

Say hello to Subway. Thanks to corpo-humanization, he has contractually waved his birth identity in order to represent the collective humanity of Subway. He's done this in order to achieve his dream of running a non-profit shelter for handicapped animals. Despite her hatred of all things corporate, Britta finds a kindred spirit in Subway, one who shares her love for wounded animals and the belief that, rather ironically, all school kids should be forced to read George Orwell's Nineteen Eighty-Four (now that is my idea of a dystopian future).

Too bad Pierce (who should really stop drinking ink) had to go and sink this ship by alerting the Thought Police Subway powers that be to their forbidden love. Quicker than you can say “Eat Fresh” Subway was whisked away to Room 101 and replaced by the creepier, considerably less handsome, but far more obedient, Subway 2. Poor Britta. She doesn't have the best luck with relationships. If they're not taken away by shadowy corporate heavies, they turn out to be war criminals, have tiny nipples, are not lesbians or Jeff Winger.

A Boy Named Kim 

The realisation that students have lockers at Greendale leads us into another routine instalment of the ongoing saga of How Jeff Winger Stopped Being An Inconsiderate Jerk. This might not have been the funniest of plotlines but it had Jeff and Annie hanging out together for the whole episode so I can't really complain. I did like how the writers pretty much acknowledged how repetitive Jeff's journey of self discovery has become. No matter how much growing Jeff does in any particular episode, come next week he's going to be right back to his usual self-centred, inconsiderate jerkish ways.

Notes and Quotes 

--No Chang again. Music to my ears.

--For the second week in a row, Community was the No. 1 show on NBC, holding up against both American Idol and The Big Bang Theory. A fourth season is now looking more and more likely. 12 seasons and a theme park!

--The Subway boss might refer to Subway 1 as 'Rick' but I'm fairly certain that in this former life, he was known as Keith Dudemeister and he used to work a Sacred Heart Hospital and was engaged to Elliot Reed.

--I'm not sure if Pierce's increasing signs of senility is meant to be simply a one-off joke or a indication that something might be seriously wrong him.

--I'm ashamed to admit that it took me a little longer than Pierce to get 'Britta Unfiltered'.

Britta: “Who do you think I am? I lived in New York.”
Pierce: “You never lived anywhere. You're a weapon designed for sex. You only think you lived in New York because I implanted your memories.”

Britta: “I’m not a whore! And not that I’ve thought about it, but if I were I’d be the classy kind that you fly to Dubai to stay in an underwater hotel.”

Dean Pelton “Wow, did you know Greendale students are technically in the army reserves? (strokes Jeff) Let’s say a little prayer for peace.”

 Jeff: “Kim, It’s me, Jeff. The inconsiderate jerk. Look, I don’t remember hurting you, and I have to assume that’s what hurt you. God knows what crime you committed to deserve me disregarding you entirely. But whatever your crime, I think we both know the real crime is mine. I’m a self-centered shallow jackass. And I just want to thank you for your note, because I’m going to try and change. I just wish you were here to forgive me.”

Britta: “Subway, I love you.”

Britta: “I don’t remember seeing Subway in my pre-menopausal post feminist experiential marketing class.”

Annie: “I'm staying in the sleep study lab. All I have to do is wake up ever three hours and go (screams wildly) and I get two credits.”

After a couple of shaky episodes, Community is finally back on top form. Three out of four books by George Orwell that I have never bothered to finish reading. ... Read full post

The Secret Circle: Sacrifice

“I just spent the last 16 years believing that witchcraft isn’t the answer, but I was wrong; it’s the only answer.”

As The Secret Circle starts to fight its way to the finish line, it’s taking a lot to get the over arcing stories off the ground. Notwithstanding a few meagre plot devices, I think that fact that the show has finally found its feet with regards the bigger picture could mean that we’re about to enter the all-important make-or-break zone. Succeed, and we could be looking at a long-running drama that could easily run The Vampire Diaries off track, fail and it’ll join the likes of Point Pleasant and Tru Calling in the “sc-fi’s that had so much freaking potential” graveyard.

This episode took a lot of mythology and fantasy traits and played them up nicely. Demons and dark magic were two of the stories that kept this show grounded early on this year, so it’s nice to see it being woven in with the standard witch hunter plot that, frankly, could use a little spicing up. Though Eben’s clearly being groomed to be this year’s big bad, his presence, and subsequent possession, weren’t that crazy to watch unfold. A few more appearances before now could have given him more of a foothold in the story.

There’s a certain amount of character integrity that’s being sacrificed in the name of staggering certain mysteries that have been plaguing us all season long. Cassie is someone who started out as a sharp, intuitive and competent protagonist, but as the year bore on, and she found herself much too distracted by her spot that love triangle, and as a result she’s become a little dense. Burning off stories rapidly is an art that few show’s can master, and though it’s done well for The Secret Circle to avoid such a tactic, a little dabbling in something like that couldn’t hurt in the long run, especially if Cassie is becoming oblivious to even the most obvious of cons.

Characters that aren’t suffering from a severe case of ditz are Faye, Melissa and Diana. Teen angst and outbursts have meshed really well with the magical undertones the past few weeks, and it was fantastic to see the writers take advantage of that, especially considering the heaviness going on elsewhere. Adam’s case of amnesia hasn’t given me much of a reason to like him more, but it’s nice to see him break out of his brooding shell a little bit. I wasn’t sold on Diana’s side trysts with Grant for a while, but the idea of one of the circle struggling to hide the truth from an outsider hasn’t really been touched on yet, and an external love interest feeds nicely into her now flourishing independence.

I’m glad Sacrifice took the time to set itself out as the start of an offensive against the nagging witch hunters, and though certain parts of this show still aren’t cutting it, I’m loving this new drive and momentum, even if it does mean more of those goddamn crystals.

Plus

- According to next week’s promo we’ll finally be learning who the second Blackwell child is.

- I wasn’t shocked at all to learn the truth about Blackwell’s history with the demons, and his secret powers. Where they take him next will be a big test for the show.

- All of the crystals fit together into one crystal. It’s weird seeing characters that aren’t Dawn and Charles talk about crystals.

- Faye is still awesome.

He Said, She Said

Faye: “I’m not in to slave labour.”
Adam: “It’s 10 bucks an hour, plus a basket of chicken wings.”
Faye: “Oh. 15.”

Melissa: “That poor guy, Cassie can’t even be around him. It’s tragic.”
Faye: “Tragic was not asking for 20.”

Adam: “For the blink of an eye, I feel like everything was perfect but I can’t remember that feeling.”

John: “You’re circle, together with the power of 6 crystals; it will destroy them once and for all.”

Diana: “In my world, people who lie about why they are, they’re dangerous.”

I don’t want to give it 3, but 2.75 out of 4 crystals is fair I think.

Previously posted at PandaTV.

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Game of Thrones Is Coming (Part II)

If the first clip from the upcoming Season Two premiere of Game of Thrones didn't strike your fancy, perhaps something a bit more scathing will do the trick. Click on for some patented Tyrion insults as we countdown to the most exciting thing to happen on a Sunday in April since the invention of Cadbury Creme Eggs.







I'm going to rate that a 10 creamy, chocolaty eggs out of 10. And now I'm picturing dragons popping out of my favorite seasonal candy, and I'm a little grossed out.
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Fringe: Nothing As It Seems

“It is either a miracle, or an accident.”

The Fringe showrunners have said that this season is a love letter to the show, and this episode’s extended callback to Season One’s “The Transformation” didn’t just revamp an old story, but complicated it, and extended it. It also shows just how far this show has come in terms of both individual scenes and larger ideas: “The Transformation” was a weak episode of a show that was finding its footing. “Nothing As It Seems” is a strong episode that plays on many, if not all, of a mature show’s strengths, including a delightful willingness to mix humor and pathos.


The framing tension of this episode was Olivia’s increasing amnesia about her old life. The FBI, unable to grapple with such fringy craziness, wants to take from her the one thing she isn’t willing to give up: her job. While it’s a bit disturbing that she’d sacrifice knowledge of Nephew Eddie for Peter, I’m unable to criticize her decision. She feels it is correct, and it’s so wacky that I must assume it is correct for her to gradually become the Olivia we’ve known for all these years. Correct—but is it a miracle or an accident? Engineered or happenstance?

What does that mean for this world that we’re in now? Who knows? An old case sorta returned, but with enough changes that it seems more like a coincidence appropriate to two universes that are closely related. Walter is less crazy than he was earlier, but we could chalk that up to Peter’s influence rather than a merging of Walter-brains. In other words, we still have no idea whether Olivia is changing, or if the entire universe will, or something else. It’d be weird for the entire world to re-set, again: as Peter and Olivia’s conversation with our old friend Ed Markham indicated, this really isn’t the same world at all.

(Olivia was re-instated, which is almost a pity: I was imagining Season Five as Peter and Olivia living a life of universe-hopping moral crime, righting wrongs under the radar and beyond the government. Like Torchwood meets Person of Interest with a dash of Leverage and Angel. Wouldn’t that be awesome?)

All that aside, the highlight of this episode wasn’t the mythos or Olivia or the gigantic flying porcupine man. It was Lincoln “Good Guy” Lee’s terrible, horrible, no-good, very bad day and his tragic realization that he’s not only lost the girl, the girl has lost her memory of their brief flirtation. On top of that, he also: realized he was such a “good guy” that he wouldn’t fight for a girl he can’t have; got attacked by a giant porcupine; had to participate in his own suturing; was treated like a child by Walter (three times); became infected with a giant-flying-porcupine virus; had his suspicion that he didn’t belong in this ersatz family confirmed by Walter, who only values him for his chess-playing abilities; went on a bacon-eating binge; had to drink a wheatgrass, penicillin, mint, and laxative smoothie; got attacked again; got beat up by a girl; had to be rescued by the guy who’d taken his crush. And he accepted it all with adorable humiliated grace.

The fat-eating gigantic flying porcupine was also interesting, although I am having some difficulty seeing how anything that bumpy and moany could represent a step forward in evolution. The “secret cult” that adhered to the doctrine of guided evolution had a touch of Dr. Moreau, but the final scene indicates either: 1) the cult has a huge bankroll and is putting a lot of effort into their culty ideas, or 2) an evil criminal mastermind has created a complicated pseudo-religious background to create a bizarre menagerie of creepy monsters. I’m leaning towards number two. Either way, I hope we see more of them, because that was Gaeta from BSG!


Weird Is A Matter of Degrees:

• TSA Agent: “Not since Bush II.”

• Olivia: “What? The world isn’t going to live up to my every expectation?”

• Walter: “I like porcupines. Shows that God has a sense of humor.”

• Walter: “Did you find his genitals, son?”

• Walter: “Which was that, good or bad?...I’m not clear. Which was the good news?” The good news/ bad news distinction is a direct allusion to a conversation in “The Transformation.”

• Olivia: “Porcupines are nocturnal. They sleep during the day.”
Walter: “So do vampires.”

• Olivia emphasized Jones as the overriding concern of this season. I suspect we shouldn’t forget about him.

• I’m a little confused about how Walter could have bought, wrapped, and stored all of those gifts while he was in St. Claire’s. Ideas?

• Yiddish is not an ancient language.

• I loved Lincoln “Porcupine” Lee eying Walter’s love handles like they were yummy, yummy food.

This was a fun, fast-paced, interesting, funny, tragic, uplifting episode. But I’ve been reserving judgment for most of this season, and I’m going to do it again tonight. It feels like an abdication of my reviewer responsibilities—I ought to offer you some wacky Doc Josie theorizing for you to agree with, disagree with, and dissect like mad. But I can’t. As fun as this episode was, Fringe refuses to even hint at possible answers and has, throughout the season, undercut any sense of narrative direction. All I can say, at this point (again) is that we’ll know by the end of the season whether or not this was a good episode or a great one. Right now, though, I can’t tell if Fringe is spinning its wheels or building to an explosive finish.


How many porcupines out of four?
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Awake: Oregon

“How can it be worse than not moving?”
“Maybe you go backwards.”

Awake continued to settle comfortably into its procedural overcoat this week, offering a standard psycho killer + driven FBI agent + wrongly accused cop plot that, once again, equaled more than the sum of its parts, in part due to the astonishing amount of symbolic doubling that occurred throughout the episode.


There was just one case this week: the Green World serial killer known as Gemini (twins, in other words) who kills two victims in similar spaces, carving a Roman numeral II onto the bodies and leaving a two-dollar bill in their hands. Although Gemini was allegedly killed by the hard-boiled FBI detective who spent 12 years unraveling the case, Britten maintains that this killer is not a copy-cat but the real guy.

Britten, of course, is right. But thanks to the FBI agent’s unwillingness to re-write her book and re-write the past twelve years of her life, as well as some serendipitous eavesdropping that lets Gemini frame Britten himself for the crime, it takes a while to unspool the case. And, while Britten is vindicated, Gemini remains at large.

Britten mentioned to Agent Santoro that he’d put a man away for 10 years, and by the end of the episode, Agent Santoro, too, knows that she has made a mistake that will keep her up at night. If the Green World is the dream reality, Britten is projecting his grief onto this FBI agent as a way of working through his own issues about Cooper from “Guilty.” Santoro re-united with her family at the end of her trauma—the professional failure, in other words, led to a personal victory, particularly with her distant daughter.

That daughter, I think, is a reflection of both Hannah and Rex. Britten has worked through most of his issues with Rex in the Green World, but if the Green World is just a dream, then he still hasn’t worked through his grief in the Red World. And Hannah’s increasingly-serious desire to move to Oregon has sent Britten’s vision of his domestic life into a tailspin. He wants reunion, even if that’s impossible.

While it’s looking more and more likely that the Green World is the dream, I’m trying not to get stuck thinking about the show in just one way. However, I can’t deny that Britten seems to be processing both the detritus of his Red World day (exclamation point) and the more emotional issues (the moving company) in this week’s complicated Green World case. Puzzled and angry over finding the Mountain Top Moving & Storage invoice in the Red World, he “solves” that puzzle in the Green World and creates a narrative in which he is wrongly persecuted, blamed for something he did not do. Does he feel like Hannah is punishing him for not grieving the way she does? Oregon represented a threat to their marriage and their life for most of this episode, just as his “hunch” in the Green World almost did him in.

Britten’s refusal to accept that this killer is just an imitation of the “real” Gemini mirrors his refusal to admit that one of his realities isn’t real. If the Green World is a dream, then Gemini might also represent Britten’s unwillingness to acknowledge his own emotional “twinning.” He’s haunted by duplication, doubling, and unresolved mysteries.

I wonder how those realities will be affected by Britten’s impending move. (I also wonder how long it will take the show to actually move the Red World to Portland.) Will Britten decide to move Rex, no matter how much that might hurt the boy? Will the realities be maintained? It seems unlikely that all of the Red World cast, especially Britten’s partner Vega, will just disappear.

Those are interesting questions, but I’m not entirely sure that they’re the right ones. This isn’t a high concept SF show, and I suspect that rampant theorizing won’t pay off. Despite that, I’m still enjoying these episodes, no matter how hackneyed some of the procedural elements are. This is, simply put, well made. Jason Isaacs, in particular, is immensely likeable and interesting. Will Awake still hold my interest in five years? Doubtful. But I look forward to it every week, and I haven’t been disappointed yet.


Bits and Bits:

• Hannah: “Here the grass actually is greener.”

• Britten: “Who do you work for? Google?”

• Bird: “I’ve been accidentally pulled over often enough to know the difference between a profile and a suspect.”

• LA has 70,000 acres of parkland?

• Fun random parallel: losing his cell phone charger in the Red World; Gemini using his phone in the Green World.

• More scenes this week that Britten didn’t see firsthand. But he could be making them up in the Green World, and imagining them in the Red World.

• LA really isn’t that bad. The sky is blue most of the time. People aren’t as crazy as they seemed on Britten’s jog. Yes, the traffic is abysmal and sometimes time does slow down to a molasses crawl on the 405 during rush hour. Yes, I’d move to northwest Oregon in a gerbil’s heartbeat. But it’s not miserable here, and it is 70 degrees and sunny almost all the time.

Three out of four exclamation points.
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Justified: Measures

"Theo Tonin sent a couple of guys down here to take out the trash."

This was an oddly amusing episode, considering it basically consisted of different factions of nasty thugs running around threatening people and featured a gruesome murder with a katana, which is not something you see every day. The clever dialogue on this show just spoils me for other shows. Although I'll readily admit that I'm not as blown away by this season's mess as I was by the Bennett crime family last year, I have yet to be bored.

Because we just don't have enough wonderful male supporting actors on this show (that was my sarcastic voice), they just added Adam Arkin as the frequently mentioned Detroit mob boss Theo Tonin, and Michael Ironside (Michael Ironside!) as Sarno, one of his more eloquent thugs. I am now looking forward to seeing Adam Arkin pulling a human ear out of his pocket and talking to it.

Wynn Duffy finally made his move. I'm just surprised it took this long. I thought it was funny that he was advising his new associate Boyd Crowder to settle for the $100K dead on Quarles instead of the $200K alive. Of course, Wynn Duffy knows Quarles better than Boyd does. Wynn Duffy and Boyd Crowder would probably work well together, since they're both relatively pragmatic and somewhat sane. But of course, to make things more complicated, Errol wants to partner with Dickie and join forces with Boyd against Limehouse. I can't wait to hear what Boyd says when they approach him about working with Dickie. Then again, it would certainly make it easier for Boyd to kill Dickie, since he'd have him right there.

Although it's confusing and everyone has a different agenda, the action appears to be heading in the direction of a nasty death for Quarles and an assault on Noble's Holler. That three million bucks has to be somewhere. Although I doubt that it's under the church. Where *does* Limehouse keep his ill-gotten gains? In the meat fridge stuffed in a pig carcass, perhaps?

It was Art's turn to shoot someone. I really enjoyed the Art/Raylan extended discussions on job performance and how to submit paperwork on Raylan's many shootings. And at least we got both Tim and Rachel this week, and they were in fine form. Well, mostly Rachel.

Bits and pieces:

-- Dickie Bennett's exit from prison made me laugh out loud. So did the dog-loving neighbor woman's description of Quarles as a huskie.

-- Errol is to Limehouse as Dickie is to Mags?

-- Bearded Pot Kingpin was back (okay, his name is Dunham, but I really like "Bearded Pot Kingpin") and is gone again already. I think he made the right decision not to back Dickie's assault on Noble's Holler. He did, didn't he? I might have lost track. Of course, that was before there were later recruitments to the cause.

-- Young Donovan was rescued from Quarles' bathroom before Quarles could do whatever it is that he does that we still (thankfully) don't know. Yay.

-- Ella Mae is ambitious, after all. She wants to be Dickie Bennett's moll. No, I got that wrong. Ella Mae wants to be Queen. Good luck with that, Ella Mae, because I get the feeling Dickie won't survive the season. Then again, I didn't expect him to survive last season.

-- In this week's hair report, you know what I'm going to say, don't you? Did Dickie Bennett actually shave off circular sections of hair over his ears? Is that a new style that I am (thankfully) as yet unaware of?

Quotes:

Raylan: "You don't even know what I'm gonna say."
Lindsay: "I think you're gonna apologize again for not giving me a full accounting of every second of your life before you heartlessly accepted the gift of my feminine virtue."
I am really enjoying Raylan's new honey. She's a woman after my own heart. Please don't let her die in the runup to the finale.

Lindsay: "I knew you were going through something. To tell you the truth, I feel a little bad taking advantage of you."
Raylan: "Really?"
Lindsay: "I mean, not so bad that I don't plan to do it again."
Like I said, a girl after my own heart.

Raylan: (to Michael Ironside) "Where'd you buy your suit? Gallows on Michigan Avenue?"

Art: "Some asshole threatened to kill one of my deputies. I'm the only one gets to do that."
Raylan: "I'm touched."

Raylan: "You ever get the feeling God's laughing at you?"
Art: "Why? Just because we shot the guy that's looking to kill the guy that you're just dying to see dead?"

Errol: "His initials are Boyd Crowder."

Three out of four huskies with eyes so blue you can see them from across the street,

Billie

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Game of Thrones Is Coming (Part I)

Game of Thrones returns on Sunday night for a second season that promises even more conspiracy, more blood, and more death. And (drumroll, please) dragons. If you think you can't wait the 54 hours that remain until the premiere (as of this posting), you might enjoy this clip of "The North Remembers." And more clips are coming!







On a scale of dragons--with 10 dragons being the most excited and 1 dragon the least--how excited are you?

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Vampire Diaries: The Murder of One

“You beat him by being better than him.”

After a weak entry last week, VD came back at full throttle this week as numerous threads tied together—and ultimately got nipped in the bud. (I mix metaphors with wild abandon. Wanna make something of it?) Our band of heroes has been attacked from all sides recently, but this episode, among other things, was a chance for most of them to come together for a common purpose.

Stefan, Damon, and Alaric worked together to create 12 white-oak stakes: seems like overkill for just a handful of Originals, yes? Especially given the in-depth “scenario” training run by Damon and Stefan, which reminded me of the sort of role-play required by various customer service jobs. (“You have one customer on the phone, two in front of you, and the espresso machine is shooting out sparks. What is your top priority?”)

Despite their numerous past sins—and, taken together, our heroes have plenty—their strength comes from teamwork and a willingness to support one another despite those sins. Caroline forgave Alaric for killing her father, Stefan forgave Elena for her feelings for Damon. The bond of love that holds them together looked like it might give them the advantage this week.

Klaus and Rebekah, however, continued to slowly chip away at our heroes’ plucky band. Rebekah wanted to compel Damon to kill either Stefan or Elena. Klaus used Bonnie to undo the very spell that our heroes were counting on to help them succeed, and used a threat to Jeremy (via Kol) to make her do it. And Finn (unintentionally) provided Sage’s motivation for betraying Damon last week and fighting Stefan, Elena, and Matt this week.

Early on, this episode established the moral quandary of such a close group of friends fighting evil: is the top priority to make sure each person is safe? Or to win the larger battle and then pick up the pieces? Stefan didn’t want to spend time rescuing Damon, and he didn’t think Damon would want that, either—but Elena did. Despite all of their collective sins, this group is strong because it asks those questions. The Originals don’t.

By the end of the episode, those questions were writ large. When an Original dies, their entire line dies. Finn’s line was short, because he was stored in a box for 900 years. Who knows how many descendants Klaus has? While most of our heroes can trace their vampire genealogy to Katherine and Rose (nice continuity!), we aren’t sure what happened before that. Maybe Katherine knows? Because it’d be great to see her again. As for Tyler’s potential death—well, I’d feel bad for Caroline.

Bonnie, still stuck out in the cold without her friends, dealt with that problem on a smaller scale: Klaus threatened her mother and Jeremy to make her undo the binding spell. Bonnie chose to protect her loved ones despite possible future risk, and I suspect our heroes will choose the same. Caroline, Stefan, and Damon hopefully won’t volunteer to die.

Stefan, particularly, doesn’t seem to have quite the death wish that he did for so much of this season. After a stern talking-to from Klaus, he’s one step closer to the “well-adjusted Stefan” that Caroline likes so much more. So well adjusted, in fact, that he is coming to terms with Elena’s complicated feelings for his brother. I wonder where that will lead?


Bites:

• Caroline: “Elena Gilbert. Savior of the cursed and the damned.”

• Finn: “He stored us in boxes!” I shouldn’t have laughed, but I did. Is that what my books say to each other after I move?

• Alaric: “Did you learn nothing from the moonstone in the soap dish?”

• Stefan: “Ex-girlfriend? Guy’s been in a coffin for 900 years.”

• Caroline: “I hear you had a run-in with Buffy the vampire.”

• Caroline: “I miss well-adjusted Stefan.”

• Caroline: “Maybe Sage was so in love with Finn she just died of sadness.” Caroline, I love you.

• Damon: “This was much different in my head.”

• Klaus: “Stop, stop. Before you hurt yourself.”

• Stefan: “I’ll be a ball of sunshine once Damon gets Alaric’s stake back. Promise.”

And Pieces:

• Did anyone else’s brain go to a shippery place when Damon wouldn’t let Elena into Alaric’s apartment?

• Also: watching vampires cook is Sexy Thing #1. Watching them use power tools? Number 4, at least.

• Caroline laid down plastic sheeting so Damon’s blood didn’t stain the floor.

• Jeremy does have a puppy. I guess that wasn’t cryptic serial killer code.

• Way to go, Matt!

As we’ve left it, there’s still a lot at (pardon the pun) stake. The Damon/Elena/Stefan triangle is blurrier than ever. Alaric’s evil alter ego (can we say “Fauxlaric”?) has hidden a stake, which means Klaus might start killing people out of vengeance if Fauxlaric doesn’t get there first. Rebekah is threatening to stay in Mystic Falls, as the cracks in the Original family are turning into chasms. Bonnie is having a much-needed breakdown. And we won’t find out what happens next until April 19th.

Three and a half out of four bear traps.
... Read full post

Being Human: The War Child

Annie: “Hal isn’t a living thing.”

It’s official: Being Human has been renewed for a fifth season. Despite a slight dip in ratings (compared with season three), fans appear to have taken to the new line-up like a duck to l'orange. Season five will be a shorter season – six episodes instead of eight – but that may not be such a handicap. In the past, extra minutes have translated into filler. Thankfully, tonight's episode was mostly useful, and saw the departure of Annie, our last surviving original character. Can a show survive with none of its original cast members? If this season's proved anything (apart from disco's not dead), the answer is probably yes.

Annie’s departure was timely and generally rewarding. To be fair, Annie’s character ran out of steam two seasons ago; so it was satisfying to see her go out with an actual bang. As far a storylines go, dying to save the world is as good as it gets. If I do have one small complaint, it's that Annie didn’t turn out to be quite as ‘special’ as I'd hoped. After the way she iced Kirby back in ‘A Spectre Calls’, I was expecting some kind of super-powered showdown between Annie and the Old Ones. All she did was push over a few lesser vamps (which even newly minted spook Alex seemed able to manage), swear magnificently, and then blow everyone apart with what looked like a Scalextric controller. Damn the BBC and its meagre SFX budget!

The last minute introduction of McNair’s maxim for life (“Always be kind and polite -- and have the materials to build a bomb”) also felt a bit naff. It was like something out of the Russell T. Davies Bumper Book of Plot Devices: say “swimming pool” a few times throughout the season, and then have an explanation turn up in the finale which solves everything. I was also a little disappointed that killing an Old One would turn out to be so easy. Not that I expected Mr Snow to be immune to exploding, but surely Milo could have briefed him on Tom’s plan to blow them all to Kingdom Come? Have these people never heard of posting guards? How Mr Snow has managed to live so long with such terrible security, I'll never know. Unless Milo's plan all along was to see Mr Snow dead.

But these are all small gripes in what was an otherwise excellent and moving finale. I thought Mark Gatiss was stellar as Mr Snow. A couple of times the mask slipped, revealing the shadow of a gurning Mycroft, but, by and large, Gatiss turned in a terrific performance. His veined face, calm demeanour, and dismissive attitude towards humankind, all added to that air of detached menace. His character had more depth after just one episode than Cutler, Tom and Alex combined; a testament to Toby Whithouse’s superior writing skills. What a pity he won’t be returning. I'd love to see a revenge obsessed Snow stalking the streets of Wales again. Mind you, if Herrick can return after being virtually compost, who knows what may happen?

Emotionally, Annie’s death pretty much hit the mark. Her parting words to Eve were both moving and heartfelt, although, unlike Mitchell and George before her, sadly, she didn't get a chance to say goodbye to her house-mates. Having to choose between the whole world and baby Eve felt impossibly awful, and its consequence -- Eve winking out of existence -- though inevitable, was oddly affecting. (Especially since Eve's been the least developed of all this season's characters.) Eve was Annie's last remaining link to George and Nina -- her familiars and her friends. Without them, Annie would have ceased to exist long ago. I liked the idea of Annie being reunited with Mitchell, George and Nina. Shame we didn't get to see it, but we did get to see Annie's face, and her reward looked good. She wasn't greeted by men holding sticks and ropes anyway.

I confess, I was moderately disappointed when Cutler’s plan turned out to be something of a wet squib. His quest for infamy ended up costing him everything. After his plan to team up with the Old Ones and subjugate humanity faltered, he even turned on his own people -- which, again, failed; all because he hadn't accounted for the variables. A force of unknown origin and strength was conspiring against him. Regardless, it was Cutler’s failure before Snow that was his downfall. If he'd only checked to make sure the werewolf footage had leaked online first. Why go to the trouble of rigging up a television set if you're not sure there'll be anything to see? Likewise, his tantrum before Mr Snow seemed senselessly risky. Snow could have torn him apart. Unless, of course, that's what he wanted. A swift end to his humiliation.

For me, Hal's been the best part of season four. From the start, he's been a mess of strengths and weaknesses. Without Tom and Annie, Hal would have become the Nazi-esque leader of Eve's future. Yet something about humanity, and his fellow supernaturals' attitudes towards it, keeps him from reverting to type. If Tom's willing to die for them, then maybe they're worth preserving. Tom and Hal's burgeoning friendship has actually made for pretty compelling viewing. Something about Tom's naivety and bravery brings out Hal's humanity. Perhaps, as well as needing to be saved, he needs to save, too. Hal doesn't want to destroy the world, nor see its inhabitants exsanguinated. Earth belongs to the humans. He just wants to earn back the privilege of being its watcher. This is a story I'm still very interested in seeing... and hopefully one they'll pursue in season five.

Bits and Pieces:

-- Presumably, Snow's careful re-enactment of Da Vinci's "The Last Supper" was the continuation of his people's 'tableau from history' tradition.

-- I'm still unsure about Alex's inclusion in the show. She wasn't specifically confirmed as a returning character in the press release, but I'm guessing she'll be there. She definitely needs more development.

-- Mr Rook looks vaguely intriguing. Presumably, the "domestic staff of the world" will feature heavily in next season's story arc. Good!

-- Having all the action happen off-screen wasn't the best way of resolving the cliffhanger.

-- So Eve didn't have any magical powers at all? Bummer!

-- I loved Tom in his duffle coat. Worst vampire busting clothes ever!

-- I thought Hal admitting to Tom that his blood drinking hadn't been entirely strategic was a wonderful character moment. Like Leo before him, Tom has become Hal's confidant and confessor.

Quotes:

Annie: “She took me into her corridor.”
Alex: *snicker* “Took me into her corridor. Sorry... misjudged the mood.”

Tom: "I didn’t think you liked shaking hands."
Hal: "Today’s a day of firsts. And lasts."

Mr Snow: "Oh Hal, you weren’t hiding. I was just giving you the afternoon off."

Hal: "Tangentially. I was involved tangentially.
Alex: "You weren’t drinking my blood tangentially."

Mr Snow: "Surely the point of temptation is to prompt a decision that has not yet been made."

Annie: “Eve, you’re fading.”
Eve: “I never happened now. I never grew up. I never saw the things I saw. That’s the only me now.”

Tom: “What you doing hangin’ around with a load of vampires?”
Milo: “Because there’s nothing noble about being on the side that loses.”
Tom: “I bet you support Manchester United as well, don’t ya?”
Milo: “You know, they’re an incredibly skilful team.”

... Read full post

Mad Men: A Little Kiss

"The torture's over, let the fun begin."

Mad Men remains one of those rare series that exists within its own impenetrable bubble of mystery. Despite being off the air for nearly two years, only mere tidbits were revealed prior to its return, meaning half the fun of its season premiere is working out how far the show has jumped forward in time, as well as seeing how the lives of each character have been shaken up during the interim -- Pete's stock has grown, but his respect remains stagnant; Roger's problems have only gotten worse; while I don't think there's any more jarring image than the sight of Joan struggling to push her baby-stroller through the glass doors of Sterling Cooper Draper Pryce...

Entering season five, Megan very much remains the cat tossed among the pigeons. She seems to ruffle everyone's feathers here, and it's interesting to see what has become of her marriage to Don. Generally, I'm still unsure of who Megan is, as well as unsure of her motivations -- and I guess that's the point. Her career has been projected into echelons that she'd never have achieved were it not for her marriage, while special mention is made of her past attempts at becoming an actress. That scene right at the end where she parades around the apartment in her underwear and demands that Don can look but not touch was particularly interesting. Here's a woman totally in charge of her sexuality, and aware of exactly what she needs to do to get something.

But it's hard to write her off, or her marriage to Don. You can understand why Peggy and Joan dislike her, since we naturally dislike anybody who bypasses typical routes of work to get into a position of power, be it through marriage or nepotism or whatever. Especially in this era, seeing Megan stride through the office and go from secretary to big cheese in just a couple of months -- it's hard to take. With all this in mind though, you still can't hate her. She's knowing and arguably manipulative, but she's generally pretty sweet and talented. She has gum whenever you need it. She's like Gwyneth Paltrow, somebody who seems sort of pleasant and friendly -- but just so unbelievably good at seemingly everything that you can't help but find her annoying.

The way Don sees her is intriguing, too. It's again sort of easy to capitalize on the intense sexual attraction he has to her, and casually dismiss their marriage as being all surface. But he trusts her enough to tell her about his past, and seems genuinely happy with her. Even Peggy notices that he seems to have lost a lot of his intensity and antagonism. Compared to Betty, Megan is a spitfire of daring and rule-breaking, but Don has always been attracted to these types that break the mold -- think Rachel or Midge. Megan represents change, and Don loves that. He's still troubled by her lack of self-awareness when it comes to who he is as a person (never do something for your partner that he/she clearly hates being a part of), and only seemed embarrassed by her public performance at the party, but there's definitely something there. Isn't that Mad Men, though? The layers and shading given to relationships, just like there are in reality...

Pete is another character who has evolved over time. Having moved to the suburbs with Trudy, he's missing the city and bonds with a train commuter over his sudden lack of enthusiasm about coming home again. His altercations with Roger have continued from last season, and you can completely sympathize with his underdog qualities. Here's a guy who is constantly working and striving, while Roger is somebody who reaps the rewards while doing nothing particularly important. Mad Men has always zeroed in on raw human emotions like this, that we can somehow all relate to. At least Pete got a minor victory in the end, even if it felt more like a gesture to shut him up more than anything else

One of the many reasons I love Joan is that, despite her sexually-charged confidence, she's also achingly vulnerable -- and becoming a mother has impacted that more than ever. Even now, a woman returning to work after a pregnancy is fraught with nerves and tension, especially when your place in the company is particularly important, so I can't imagine how uncomfortable it must have been forty years ago. Not only is she worried that her job is threatened, but there's additionally that worry that her bread and butter has been compromised. Joan, as good as she is at her job, needs her shrewd confidence and sexual allure to remain powerful. But now she has extra baby-weight and young things snapping at her heels. It's no surprise she's on edge and susceptible to breaking down.

Her scene with Lane was particularly moving as a result. Lane himself is a character that I find completely absorbing, but who rarely gets his time in the spotlight. The annoyingly open-ended stories last year with his father and his Playboy Bunny girlfriend, most notable. Here, however, we got more insight into his personal life, and glimpse that things aren't great at home. Financially he's struggling, and you have to wonder if he was initially going to pocket the cash he found. In the end, it was the possibility of some kind of sexual distraction that peeked his interest, calling up the owner of the wallet and reaching his attractive girlfriend instead. These scenes were so powerful, with Lane getting more and more excited by the thought of potentially meeting this woman, followed by that horrible pause over the line as you realize that she's not at all interested in actually pursuing their brief flirtation over the phone into reality. It was a little moment of sexual playfulness, and Lane got a little too wrapped up in it. Aww.

Civil rights, arguably one of those areas that Mad Men awkwardly hasn't explored very much over the years, is very prominent throughout the episode. The newly-vocal black minority start out as mere pawns in a horrible game between SCDP and their advertising rivals Y&R, an advertisement promoting SCDP's racial equality accidentally reading like a want ad, leading to a huge turn-out of black faces desperate for work. It's one of the more upsetting moments of the episode, not only in seeing the black men immediately turned away, but also in seeing how excited and hopeful the women are over the potential of a job that likely doesn't even exist. Elsewhere, Megan's presence has also injected various unconventional characters into Don's lily-white world, like the beatnik band and that flamboyant black friend of her's. It's the show being pushed into new territory, many of our protagonists left uncomfortable by the natural progression of society.

I don't know why I ever get worried about Mad Men, seeing as it's been consistently spectacular since the very first episode -- one of the rarest of shows in that regard. And A Little Kiss was no different, a confident opener that breathlessly threw us back into the lives of these deeply complicated individuals, with every character from Don himself to recurring guests like Jane being given wonderful lines of dialogue and evocative new characterization. Mad Men is breathtaking, and shows no sign of letting up.

Notables

- While I like to generally post reviews the day after the episode has aired, my Mad Men reviews will be a little less regular -- if only because there's far more depth to a show like this than, say, Ringer. Regardless, each review will be posted at some point before the next episode airs.

- Megan, Henry Francis and art director Stan have all been promoted to regular cast member status.

- I loved that the Y&R chumps were like Bizarro World doppelgangers of our SCDP regulars.

- The music while Sally woke up was gorgeous, like something straight out of a surreal 1960's drug haze. She only appeared briefly here, but she was able to say so much with just her eyes and the minor dialogue she had -- she's clearly uncomfortable around her dad's new wife, despite their bonding last season, and the spacious apartment Don now resides in remains an unsure labyrinth of empty corridors and strange doorways. Ah.

- Somebody's surely made a GIF of Lane dancing, right?

- It's de rigeur to slam January Jones, but I'm a total Betty apologist and really missed her this week. But with Jones' real-life pregnancy and Betty's natural seat on the periphery of things anyway, I'm expecting a lot more additional absence this season.

- I adore Pete, in particular the fact that he's just the unluckiest man in the world. As much as he tries, he's always 'that guy' -- the one that has to wheel a dead body out of the office, or gets a newborn baby dumped in his hands, or the one that smacks his face into a stone column.

- I sort of agreed with Heinz. CGI food moving around just isn't attractive, especially when it's generally an unattractive food.

- Everybody's clothes have gotten so loud and colorful, but I need to mention Pete's checkered jacket, Megan's mini-skirt, as well as Jane's psychedelic-leathery-trophy-wife dress.

Quotage

Bobby: How old are you gonna be?
Don: Forty. So when you're forty, how old will I be?
Bobby: You'll be dead.

Sally: You're not gonna come in?
Don: No. But give Morticia and Lurch my love.

Roger: What's Don up to today? I see a lot of napping and pillow-talk.
Caroline: That's your schedule.

Peggy: Men hate surprises. Didn't you have Lucy in Canada?

Harry: A negro homosexual, Canadian sexpot and unaccompanied redhead -- this may be my key demographic.

Pete: I was raised sex, politics and religion aren't party talk.
Trudy: What does that leave?
Peggy: I don't know... alcohol and work?

Roger: Why don't you sing like that?
Jane: Why don't you look like him?

Pete: What kind of impression does this space give you? Do you gaze upon the cement column and think, "yes, I believe success for me and my company dwells here"?

Meredith: I'm very happy being nobody here.
Joan: I knew a girl who had your job who ended up with everything.

Roger: Well, well, well -- there's my baby. And move that brat out of the way so I can see her.

Previously posted at Unwelcome Commentary.
... Read full post

Ringer: Let's Kill Bridget

"Don't be so Welsh. You can say you got shot -- it'll give you street cred."

Part of the problem with a show that roots its foundation in fake-outs is that you end up spending most of your time trying to spot the fake-out before it arrives. Throughout it's nineteen episodes, Ringer has gone out of its way to set up shock cliffhangers, before pulling back and revealing a frequently annoying sleight of hand. But it's become so routine that any effect they once had has rapidly vanished. Let's Kill Bridget opened with three separate cliffhangers. We saw Andrew making out with Catherine, Henry being interrogated by the police, and Bridget (or is it Siobhan?) lying dead on the ground with a bullet in her chest. Maybe ten episodes ago we would still see all this and be mightily intrigued, but at this point you just wait for the inevitable truth to come flying at you.

As a result, this episode was sort of a drag. Machado once again became a little more interesting, and as he's become one of those '80s-movie style 'renegade ex-cops', he should surely become tougher and more ruthless from here on out. His scene with Bridget was also pretty absorbing, in particular Bridget's realization of his emotional involvement in the case. But it quickly began spiraling out of control soon after, Machado coming up with this ludicrous plan to fake Bridget's death (with Bridget-as-Siobhan 'playing' Bridget... gah) by taking photographs of her (what do you know!) lying dead on the ground with a bullet in her chest. I guess he'd then pass these around among the Wyoming criminal underworld... and this show just got stupider.

Elsewhere, it was clear from the off that Andrew and Juliet were manipulating Catherine, but it was good luck on their part that Catherine has become another Ringer moron, what with not being at all suspicious that the Palm Springs house cost the exact same amount of dollars that she stole from Andrew just a couple of weeks ago. The cliffhanger ending, revealing that Catherine was presumably behind the initial hit on Siobhan way back in the pilot, was naturally pretty juicy, but not exactly the show-rattling twist it probably should have been -- what with Catherine already being a soulless freakshow monster. It's not a surprise to add murderer to her wrap sheet.

Let's Kill Bridget was wall-to-wall stupid, but I appreciate that the show is playing catch-up with all the various plot berries that have been dropped since Ringer first began. And Sarah Michelle Gellar did sell the hell out of that twin confrontation, even if it was naturally another fake-out.

Notables

- Blah, blah -- dramatic license -- blah, but surely it's illegal for a cop to tell a potential murder suspect the identity of whoever tipped them off?

- "MARTIN/CHARLES PONZI FRAUD". Hahahahahaha.

Quotage

Juliet: First he sold the loft, and now I guess he's even selling the house in Palm Springs.
Catherine: Who cares? Palm Springs is for gays and old people.

Machado: Bodaway and his crew, they're going to be a threat to you and your family until they see your sister dead. So let's beat 'em to the punch -- let's kill Bridget.

Previously posted at Unwelcome Commentary. ... Read full post

Castle: 47 Seconds

[Let's give a warm welcome to ChrisB, who will be reviewing Castle for us! -- Billie]

“To sin by silence, when they should protest, makes cowards of men.” Abraham Lincoln

After several weeks of a weaker show, this one came back all guns blazing, or bombs exploding. I loved this episode and, for the first time in quite some time, I got so caught up in the story that I stopped taking notes and just watched.

The case itself was better than many have been. It was good to have Gates back at the helm again. Unlike many on the boards, I have been a fan of hers from the beginning and I think she adds a nice touch of realism to the precinct. She was great here, and I like to think that she is beginning to thaw, just a bit, towards our hero.

What was really well done isn’t evident until the second viewing. Throughout, we get flashbacks as people are talking about what they experienced at the bombing. The second time through the episode, you’re able to see and hear the others’ experiences as well. It effectively ties together the 47 seconds very well. And, for a change, we are shown quite a bit of the true bomber. Unlike last week, the denouement did not come out of left field.

The bombing was incidental to and was the catalyst for a very big, long awaited Caskett episode. We got two almost conversations, both interrupted. Unfortunately, this seems to be the writers’ fall back scenario (they’ve been using it since season two) and I have stopped hoping that any big speech is going to happen at the station. Where, arguably, it shouldn’t. But, those almost conversations were just the beginning.

The big change in this episode is that secret number one has (finally!) been revealed. I was pleasantly surprised at how it happened. It felt organic and real to me, not at all contrived. What I found very interesting was Castle’s response to it.

On the one hand, is it me or was there a touch of ret-con? In episode four of this season, as Beckett and Castle walk up to a crime scene, Beckett winces. Castle asks Beckett if she has remembered anything from the shooting and, when she says no, he looks at her askance. I’ve always taken that look to mean that he suspected she remembered more than she was saying, but here he seemed utterly surprised.

On the other hand, I thought his response was wonderfully human and flawed. Rather than just confronting her with the truth that he knew, he just assumed that she does not love him and started acting a bit immature and passive-aggressive. Completely understandable. How many of us can say we haven’t done something similar when we’ve felt rejected?

Castle’s interactions with Alexis felt very human to me as well. He knows that she’s an adult, but like many parents I know, he wants her to remain innocent and untouched by the world for as long as possible. I believe it was Alexis’ conversation with him about doing something real that propelled him back to the station – he very nearly quotes her directly before heading back in.

Some of my favourite Castle conversations have been between Martha and Castle. This week, we got two. As mad as she is, Martha deeply loves her son and wants him to be happy. While I think she is the biggest shipper around, she will support Castle in whatever decision he makes. She is consistently the voice of reason, putting into words what Castle should hear, even if he doesn’t want to.

The last ten minutes were really well put together. Castle solved the bombing, in spite of being so angry. His anger and hurt are just below the surface (well done, Nathan Fillion) but he won’t say anything to Beckett. Beckett is trying to figure out what went wrong; although, I would guess that she sort of suspects. She does know that Castle was in the precinct during the interrogation, but some part of her doesn’t want to go there.

But, now, Castle is the keeper of not just the one, but two secrets. This is not going to end well. Why, oh why, will these two just not talk to each other? I guess it’s because we’ve still got four more episodes left in this season, and it’s looking more and more as though another one at least.

Four out of four happy face pancakes.


Tidbits:

-- Gates writes the number seven like the Europeans, with a slash through it. Wonder where she picked that up?

-- West Side Wally’s sign: Will work protest for food. And, wouldn’t it be wonderful if we could all see Beethoven? I was so pleased that it all made sense at the end.

-- Loved the screen showing all the cell phones on it. A touch of Big Brother, but very cool.


Soundbites:

Castle: “You know, most of our victims, they … they die for a reason. You know, there’s a logic behind it. It’s a twisted logic at times; but, at least it makes some kind of sense.”
Beckett: “Yeah, but in this case, these people were just in the wrong place at the wrong time.”
Castle: “And their future, and all their plans – everything is just gone in a flash.”
Beckett: “It makes you think about all those things in your own life that you don’t want to put off anymore.”

Martha: “It’s complicated, so you say. Only it’s not. It’s not. Nobody’s tomorrows are guaranteed, right? Wouldn’t it be better to tell her even if the timing is wrong than never to tell her at all?”
Castle: “And, what if she isn’t ready?”
Martha: “Then she never will be. Then you move on.”

Gates: “I believe you’re my best bet.”
Castle: “I think she’s finally beginning to like me.”
Gates: “No, I’m not.”
Castle: “Wearing her down.”

Castle: “These are emergency cheering-up pancakes. I mean, these are usually reserved for after break-ups or ‘Dancing with the Stars’ eliminations.”

Castle: “You’re a pretty smart kid, you know that?”
Alexis: “Well, they say genius skips a generation.”
Castle: “Apparently, so does funny.”

Beckett (in the interrogation room): “I was shot in the chest and I remember every second of it. And, so do you.”
Castle (behind the glass): “All this time... you remembered?”

Castle: “I really thought we could have a future together. You know, I was... I was willing to wait. Come to find out, it’s all just a big joke. She knew. This whole time, she remembered, and she didn’t say anything because she was embarrassed. Because she doesn’t feel the same way. I’m such a fool.”

Martha: “Richard, love is not a switch. You can’t just turn it off. You can’t work side by side with her and not feel anything.”
Castle: “Watch me.”

Castle: “Well, that’s what your friend Jesse would call sinning by silence. It’s not smart. It’s not brave. It’s just cowardly.” ... Read full post

Community: Contemporary Impressionists

“Abed is a magical elf-like man who makes us all more magical by being near us.”

While last week's episode tried to spread the love around and give everyone a plotline, this episode wisely kept the focus on Abed and Jeff, the problems they were not dealing with and Tory and Britta's efforts to look out for their friends. This left Annie and Shirley drifting in the background, while Pierce and Chang were given things that maybe could be considered sub-plots.

Troy and Abed (otherwise known as Brown Jamie Lee Curtis) have a very special bond. They are so close, so in tune with each other's thoughts, that they are almost a single entity. Which is why I'm not happy to see a rift starting to develop between, one that could've been so easily avoided. All Troy had to do was talk to Abed about his problem, explain to him exactly how much trouble he is in, and not run around behind his back trying to fix everything himself. Even so, I still don't think that this situation is strong enough to drive a wedge between these two soul mates. Troy calling Inspector Spacetime is rubbish, or that Cougar Town deserves to be cancelled (I've seen it, it doesn't), those are things I can causing a serious rift.

In a really crazy, inaccessible, and maybe too dark, twist, Abed went into the Dreamatorium and made contact with Evil Abed, who has now grown a proper, non-felt, goatee. How is this possible? Is Abed going crazy or is the darkest timeline starting to bleed into the regular timeline now? Maybe, by using the same space to continually imagine themselves in other realities, Troy and Abed have been able to open the door between other realities. I know that sounds like Somewhere in Time science but it's the best I could come up with on such short notice. Which is a lie, I just wanted to slip a Somewhere in Time reference into the review (my mind works like that sometimes).

While Troy and Abed appear to be drifting apart, Britta and Jeff seem to grow closer to each other. But hopefully not too close. I still don't like the idea of Jeff and Britta as a couple (if you've been reading my reviews you'll know who I ship Jeff with). I think they'd be a disaster together. They work much better as friends who support and look out for each other. But strictly platonic friends.  

Notes and Quotes

--Britta's psychology textbook is by Dr. Ian Duncan. Are we ever going to see him this season?

--The whole thing with Abed being in debt to French Stweart's look-a-like (played by French Stewart)  was really just a flimsy excuse to get everyone to dress up. But it did give us Britta as Michael Jackson, so I'll let them off.

--I'm sure I would find all the Ryan Seacrest jokes funnier if I had a better idea of who the hell he is (he's the host of American Idol, right? Wait, I don't care).

--The funniest scene had to be Jeff, now a handsome ego monster with his insecurity and self-doubt gone, wearing aviators and reducing our resident Pansexual Imp into quivering messes. I have to admit, he does have one good looking shadow.

--Earlier this season Chang thought he was a noir detective. Now he thinks he's Patton and is planning to take over Greendale and replace the Dean with Moby's look-a-like. I know this might seem extreme, but please just kill him off.

--I glad that Britta wasn't the buzzkill screw up. It was fun for a bit, but they've been overdoing it this season.

--At the Doctor Who Convention in Cardiff this weekend, Karen Gillan revealed she's a Community fan and loves Inspector Spacetime. She tried explaining it to Matt Smith, Arthur Darvill and Steven Moffat, promoting Moffat to promise to “take the rip” back.

Troy: “Britta, stop arguing. If you have anything else to say, say it in a high-pitched voice while walking backwards.” Britta: “Jeff is in grave danger! Heee-heee!”

Abed: “Cool, cool, cool.”
Evil Abed: “Hot, hot, hot.”

Dean Pelton: “I don't know who told you pouting was an option for you, but all you making me feel right now, is hatred for Renee Zellweger.”

Jeff: “It appears you have all noticed my swagger has a new swagger.”

While a definite improvement over 'Urban Matrimony and the Sandwich Arts', 'Contemporary Impression' still felt like the show is cruising on autopilot. Two and three quarters out of four Fat Brandos. ... Read full post

Breaking Bad: 4 Days Out

"Did your mother drop you on your head when you were a baby?"

And the moral of the story is, never ask Jesse to put your keys in a safe place. Well, and never go into the desert to do something illegal without a second car. No, wait. The real lesson is that when your honey wants you to go have fun during the weekend, you go.

The initial scenes gave us some nice moments. Walt and Jesse were actually enjoying each other's company. Working together, laughing together, peeing in tandem while gazing into the sunset. And then they were suddenly trapped in the middle of nowhere with many pounds of meth, no water, no food and almost immediately, no cell phone coverage as well.

The situation with the two of them trapped in the desert was an obvious parallel to Walt's health. He thought he was about to die, symbolically out of water and with his lights and power going out, no chance of restarting his engine. Jesse's idiotic contributions (putting the key in the ignition, pouring all their water on the generator) represented the vicissitudes of life and the vagaries of luck. Walt's incredible smarts and a great Mister Wizard solution got them out of the desert, but Walt would have died out there if it hadn't been for Jesse. (If it had been me, someone would have found my bleached bones many years later.)

This was the first time that I was sure Walt and Jesse had grown to genuinely care about each other. There was fun and camaraderie, and then they were furious with each other. When Walt gave up, Jesse forced him to keep trying, to think completely outside the box. Walt wouldn't have made it without Jesse, and vice versa. Loved their final scene at the airport where Walt acknowledged that if he did die before he got his cut, he trusted Jesse to get his half of the money to Skyler.

Walt needs more people to trust than just Jesse, though. Skinny Pete is a moron. If they'd called Skyler, she would have shown up in record time with a gallon of water and a three-course meal. Saul was right that Walt should tell her. Interestingly, Walt's doctor also told him outright, in regard to his health, "No more secrets, Walt."

I love the openings for this show, because they always mean something. The opening shot here was of water pouring out into nothing. The closing shot was of Walt cupping water in his trembling hands, before he let it run out and then beat at his own reflection. Walt is in remission and his tumor has shrunk significantly. He might actually beat cancer. Will he change his mind about his secret new career? I don't think so.

Bits:

-- When Walt saw his scan with the giant mass that he mistakenly assumed was a death sentence, it was reflected on a poster entitled "Outer Banks."

-- Jane was smart, telling Jesse that Georgia O'Keeffe did paintings that looked like vaginas in order to get him to agree to go to a museum.

-- There were several lighthearted pieces in the musical score. Very vacation-like.

And pieces:

-- Walt still hasn't told his mother.

-- Urine tastes like really hot, really old soda? Gag.

Quotes:

Saul: "Sixteen thousand, laundered at seventy-five cents on the dollar, minus my fee which is seventeen percent, comes to nine thousand, nine hundred and sixty dollars. Congratulations! You just left your family a second-hand Subaru."

Jesse: "I got plans."
Walt: "Smoking marijuana, eating Cheetos and masturbating do not constitute plans in my book."

Walt: "You brought a meth lab to the airport?"

Walt: (looking at the junk food) "How are you even alive?"

Jesse: "What are we building?"
Walt: "You said it yourself."
Jesse: "A robot?"

An unforgettable episode. Four out of four pieces of galvanized metal,

Billie

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Once Upon a Time: Hat Trick

“It’s hard enough to live in a land where you don’t belong, but knowing it, holding conflicting realities in your head, will drive you mad.”

If ‘Heart of Darkness’ drew the battle lines, then ‘Hat Trick’ erased them and then drew them again, except bigger, and broader than they ever were before. An already fascinating world, still rife with unexplored territory, was expanded and characters and their places in the series were called into question.

All of the forward momentum that last week conjured up was kept pumping here, as the series begins its final hurdle. I don’t want to sound like a hypocrite or whatever, since I know I belittled ‘Red-Handed’ for the strange discord between its Storybrooke and flashback plots, but this episode was a far superior example of taking two opposing stories, and creating an hour-long escapade into a breezy, and exciting foray into the world of fairy tales.

Emma is a strange entity sometimes. I don’t think I’ve ever had such conflicting emotions about a single character in forty minutes. At first I was enraged at how easy Jefferson took her down, then I was cheering her on as she shrewdly escaped his clutches, then angry again at her narrow mindedness, then back on her team within the final 30 seconds. Regardless of my fleeting emotions, I’m glad that this episode managed to invest me equally in both ongoing stories this week; I hope this throttling pace can be maintained until the season concludes.

Jefferson is the first instance of a character being fully knowledgeable of all things “curse”. His story is also one of the few non-regular character ones that is begging for further exploration. He’s clearly a man who’s lost a lot, but he’s also someone determined to make things right for his family. His trip to wonderland, which was chock-a-block full of the cheesiest special effects so far, boasted a number of fascinating characters tells and not just in his case, Regina’s reach clearly extends beyond her own world. It’s pivotal for a series that is expecting its narrative to last beyond a meagre couple of years to keep its story as dense as possible.

Parental bonds seem to be an important dynamic where Once Upon a Time is concerned, and no more so than in 'Hat Trick' when the power of not just Jefferson and Grace’s connection was explored, but Emma’s strengthening love for her son (notice that she’s been referring to him as "my kid") and Regina’s now defunct love for her father were given a spin as well. Not to mention the fact that the two female leads are the personal embodiment of this all-important theme, something that’s almost being forgotten as the series progresses forward. It seems as Emma opens up to her true role in Henry’s life, she’s also bringing those torn apart by the curse back together again.

For the first half of this season, I was always one of those mad Regina supporters, constantly defending her in the face of her “one-note” haters. The Kathryn arc hasn’t been one that’s allowed her the chance to show many dimensions, but this week was the first instance seen Graham’s death when we finally saw a glimmer of a multi-layered woman. Obviously, a lot happens between this episode’s flashback, and her sacrifice in ‘The Thing You Love Most’, but her character augmentation needed to be rectified again, even if it happened in as small a dose as this one.

Emma finally suspecting the role of magic in this town’s history makes me feel that much stronger about Once Upon a Time’s long term stability, and Hat Trick seemed like the perfect direction for the series to take after last week’s turning point. I have a lot of faith in this show now; hopefully the next few weeks can live up to those high expectations.

Plus

- Who is the Queen of Hearts? I assume she won’t appear until someone awesome has been cast. Ringer’s cancellation is imminent, may I make a suggestion?

- How creepy was the Mad Hatter’s final scene? This series has done an amazing job of expanding tradition tales and giving them new levels of depth and emotion.

- I’m assuming that Regina’s deception of Jefferson took place before the events of ‘The Thing You Love Most’, but after ‘The Heart is a Lonely Hunter’?

- Wonderland was the perfect symbol for the characters’ current confinement in Storybrooke, and it was a painful reminder at that.

- I hope I’m not letting my blondeness get the better of me, but am I right in assuming Regina’s magic isn’t innate? Is she living off stolen juice from Pam Maleficent and Anya the Blind Witch?

- Paul McGillion! It was oddly comforting seeing his face again, though I always expect him to talk in his native accent.

- How great was Regina’s reaction to Mary Margaret being safe and sound in her cell? I’m glad her true role in her botched escape was revealed this early. It keeps the show on its toes, and I like seeing her loose out once in a while.

He Said, She Said

Emma: “Have you been reading Henry’s book?”
Jefferson: “Henry, you mean the Queen’s father?”
Emma: “Henry, the Mayor’s adopted kid.”
Jefferson: “Oh Henry, your Henry and his book of stories, the one that you choose to ignore. Maybe if you knew what I know, you wouldn’t.”

Jefferson: “I hate Wonderland.”

Jefferson: “My Daughter, my Grace, she’s waiting for me, I promised her I’d be home for tea.”
Regina: “A promise you now have broken. If you truly cared for your daughter you never would have left her in the first place. You were right Jefferson. You don’t abandon family.”

Emma: “If you really think she’s your daughter why don’t you reach out to her, why don’t you tell her?”
Jefferson: “And destroy her reality? I’m trapped by knowledge. How cruel do you think I am? You think I’d inflict that awareness on my daughter? It’s hard enough to live in a land where you don’t belong, but knowing it, holding conflicting realities in your head, will drive you mad.”

Emma: “Have you been taking kick-boxing and not telling me about it?”
Mary Margaret: “I have no idea where that came from...”

Mary Margaret: “Why is it so important to you what happens to me?”
Emma: “Because when Regina framed me, and you bailed me out I asked you why and you said you trusted me and then when I thought I wanted to leave Storybroke because it was best for Henry you told me I needed to stay because that was best for him. I realized all my life, I have been alone. Walls up. Nobody’s ever been there for me except for you and I can’t lose that, I cannot lose my family.”

3 and a half out of 4 magic hats.

Previously posted at PandaTV.
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Fringe: A Short Story About Love

“It’s every human being’s right to know love.”

Alan Carr locked his victims in what appeared to be an iron lung crossed with a ricer in order to distill their pheromones and experience the love of his victims’ partners for a few brief moments. While his deeds were despicable, it was impossible not to sympathize with him and his silent, conversation-less existence: he rarely spoke and was rarely spoken to. He was quietly, desperately, lonely.


His parallel in this episode was Peter, who had very few lines and spent most of the episode following the Observer’s scavenger hunt for the glowy phallic object rather than cause more trouble for Olivia, who is—final verdict!—“his” Olivia. Carr killed the men for their pheromones and the women so they would not have to live in grief, aware of what they had lost. Peter, now, can finally and with full confidence embrace the woman that he’s been so conflicted about for so long. No grief for him!

Lincoln, on the other hand, had a subtle tragic-love moment. I’m not a Peter/Olivia shipper any more than I am a Lincoln/Olivia shipper: I want as many characters to be happy as possible, in whatever forms that happiness takes. But I did feel pity for Lincoln, slipping so easily into the “just-friends” mode with Olivia. Does she even remember their almost-relationship? Surely Lincoln hasn’t forgotten his conversation with Fauxlivia, and her dismissal of the other Lincoln Lee’s attentions. Lincoln’s parallel was, rather obviously but still touchingly, Sutter’s wife.

Like Lincoln, Olivia saw herself in Sutter’s wife. It’s no surprise, really: isn’t that the dominant emotional arc of this show? Each character (except maybe Astrid) has shut him or herself off from love since the beginning of the series, and we want them to find that hopefully possibility again. Walter admired Peter for being willing to leave this Olivia behind, and was reminded of his own unwillingness to do the same for Peter and other-Peter. He’s opened himself to this new Peter because he has the possibility of hope—hope for redemptive love in Peter’s eyes, which he seems to be finding.

Olivia said, “If Peter was going to be with me, then I didn’t think about the consequences. I didn’t care.” But now she is: the price of love is the mind that loves. At first, Olivia didn’t want to lose herself, her memories, her entire life (of love, hate indifference, etc.) to gain Peter. Now, though, she wants to avoid closing herself off and open herself to a life that isn’t hers, just to have the possibility of love.

As we’ve left it, she does not know that she has made the right decision. (Which makes it all the more right, I suppose.) And we do not know that this means for the reality that she is slowly forgetting: did it never happen? Will it linger if enough people want it to remain un-erased, the way Peter lingered? While the romantic heart of the show has been repaired, the mythological ramifications are yet to be fully explored.

Organic Ocular Suggestion:

• The Observer: “You could not be fully erased, because the people who care about you would not let you go, and you would not let them go. I believe you call it love.”

• I fully expected dehydration-victim Sutter to spring back to life like the victim in Se7en.

• Did the credits look browner this week, or was it just because I watched this episode on a different screen? And what color do you think they’ll be next week?

• Speaking of a different screen: my DVR didn’t record this episode, and because I hate watching TV on my laptop (yes, I’m old), I put it off…long enough to realize that Fox has a bizarre policy of only releasing episodes for a day, then unreleasing them for the next eight days. Grr!


Four out of four teddy bears.
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The Hunger Games

"May the odds be ever in your favor."

Incredibly faithful adaptations are a mixed blessing, especially if it's from a book that you've read and loved. For me I tend to tick off a checklist of my favorite moments; what did they get right, what did they get wrong, and so forth. With The Hunger Games, it became such a problem for me to try and figure out how I felt that I had to see it a second time. Thankfully, the second time around I got a much better grasp on my opinion.

This movie was really powerful and really engaging, but it doesn't explain itself very well. The main gist of the plot makes sense, don't get me wrong. Unfortunately, the details pertaining to why certain moments have significance are not related well enough. That can be a problem with a story that has so many subtle setups for the rest of the series. My only hope is that they fill in those details in future sequels. They even had a mechanism that allowed for that kind of exposition. That isn't my only problem with the film, but it is my biggest gripe.

The other problem I had was with a plot detail that I don't want to get into in this review. Suffice it to say there was a scene that didn't have quite as much creepy menace as it should have. Which is probably due to the overall reduction in violence compared to the book. Although I'm honestly not sure they could put in everything from the book on the screen without an R rating. But I want to be clear that I really loved this movie. It was extremely faithful, and I walked away from it with a real anticipation for the next one.

The good aspects were really good. Jennifer Lawrence's performance was subtle and powerful. Katniss is a wonderful heroine, she's strong as well as vulnerable. Lawrence was able to convey that conflicted determination really well, which is good thing because she is in practically every scene. Thankfully she isn't the only one that did a great job. Almost all the supporting cast delivered solid performances. From the bit parts of the other tributes, to the adults that play the political side of this story, they were all memorable and effective.

The strange thing is that this didn't feel like a big budget film. That might be a bit of a criticism, but I really liked the choices they made. It felt real. Even the extreme and outrageous looks of the people of the capital were done in interesting way. They looked ridiculous, like a costume party on LSD, yet it wasn't some glossy Hollywood attempt at futuristic fashion. It felt like they took modern fashion sideways with surgical manipulation and a bit of color blindness. I do wish some of the CGI was a little more effective in the final act, but I've forgiven slightly shoddy effects work before.

Overall, I think this was a great start to a great trilogy. I got all the things I wanted to see, even if I wish they spent more time with some of the details.

3 out of 4 genetically altered wasps that give you hallucinations when they sting you. ... Read full post

Supernatural: The Born-Again Identity

"Is it me or is this just like the Cage?"

A little riding around in an old car, a little smiting here and there, and it all comes back to you.

I've thought all along that Sam really was seeing Lucifer, who was somehow able to torment him long distance from the Cage. We still don't know, but Lucifer's reality wasn't relevant this time. It was that Sam, exhausted physically and emotionally and at the point of dying, used the last of his energy to free a young woman from the ghost that was trying to kill her. It was that Castiel, as soon as he remembered who he was and what he had done, sacrificed his sanity and freedom for Sam. It was sort of heart-warming. As heart-warming as Supernatural gets, anyway.

I enjoyed this episode for other reasons, too: the callbacks to "Faith" and "Sam, Interrupted"; the return of Meg, who (hilariously) stayed behind as "Nurse Masters" to watch over Castiel. And of course, I'm so pleased that Castiel is back. I avoid spoilers for the most part, and the previews hinted that Misha Collins was going to be playing someone else (I was thinking maybe Jimmy with no memory, or still possessed by leviathans). But thankfully, that was misdirection and it was obvious to me immediately that it was Castiel with amnesia. And a wife. A wife? I sort of can't blame Daphne for latching on to Castiel. What hetero woman wouldn't be tempted by a sweet, gorgeous naked guy with no memory? Okay, okay, God sent her to protect Castiel, but still.

Castiel had better not stay in the hospital forever because I really do want him back on a more permanent basis. I've assumed that they wrote Castiel out because having an angel around who can fix nearly everything is too much of a plot killer, but couldn't they find a way around that? Especially if there's going to be a season eight?

The ghost was back, and we still don't know who or what it is. Although now that Castiel has just been eliminated as a candidate and the business card was for Bobby's friend, it seems like it just has to be Bobby. We just got another reminder of what happens to ghosts who stick around, though, and I really don't want to see Bobby as an angry ghost. Even if it would bring Jim Beaver back.

Dean said he used to be able to fight evil and just shake it off. That hasn't been true for a looooooong time. But it was sweet that he kept Castiel's raincoat for him. Although I really think he should have gotten it drycleaned first.

Bits and pieces:

-- There was a lot of broken glass in this episode. I think that was a callback to Castiel's introduction in "Lazarus Rising."

-- Loved Mark Pellegrino. He did a great job with the flirtatious torture, this time with props. And it was great to see demon Meg again, but Rachel Miner looked different. I hope she isn't ill.

-- I thought the creepy bald doctor was a leviathan. And that hospital was pretty shabby, with peeling paint on the beds and walls. You'd think a modern mental hospital would look better than that.

-- The bargain with Crowley has run out. Please tell me that means Mark Sheppard is returning.

-- This week: Northern Indiana State Hospital, and "Emmanuel" and Daphne Allen were living in Colorado. Sam was committed under the name "Sam Smith."

-- Congratulations to Jared Padalecki and Genevieve Cortese, who welcomed a baby boy on March 19: Thomas Colton Padalecki. Great timing, too, because aren't they nearly ready to go on hiatus for the summer? Hopefully Jared will get some paternity leave.

-- Couldn't Sam have tried earplugs? (Yeah, yeah, I know, it was in his head.)

Quotes:

Dean: "Quit being Dalai freaking Yoda about this, okay? Get pissed!"

Dean: "So who named you 'Emmanuel'?"
Castiel: "Bouncingbabynames dot com."
Could that possibly be a little reference to Jared and Genevieve? They're certainly in for some sleepless nights, too.

Meg: "You got the juice. You can smite every demon in that lot."
Castiel: "But I don't remember how."
Dean: "It's in there. I'm sure it's just like riding a bike."
Castiel: "I don't know how to do that, either."
I soooo missed my deadpan Castiel. *smooch*

Dean: "This ain't going to go well."
Meg: "I don't know. I believe in the little tree-topper."

Three out of four tree-toppers,

Billie

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