Category: Television

Doctor Who S11Ep1 – The Woman Who Fell to Earth

Warning: there will be spoilers abound in all my Doctor Who reviews. Continue at your own risk.

After what seemed like forever, we finally got to meet the new Doctor this past Sunday, and… I have no words other than BRILLIANT. I mean, just look at her running around in Capaldi’s old close, looking a bit mad.

That’s her making a new sonic out of scraps she finds on Earth because she’s brilliant and can do anything.

In case you can’t tell, I really loved our Lady Doctor and the episode she gets introduced in. Throughout the extended season premiere we get to meet who will become the new companions as they get sucked into a mystery involving what else but aliens and the Doctor. I think my favorite of all of them was Grace, who unfortunately does not make it to the end of the episode. As Ryan points out in his ending video to his YouTube followers, she died the way she lived – helping people.

The companions we are left with are nothing to sneeze at, however. I love how Ryan is curious and unafraid from the start, but feels bad when he realizes his curiosity maybe got people hurt. I hope he keeps being curious while maybe being a little smarter about it in the future.

Then there’s Yasmin (Yas to her friends), the rookie police officer who wants something more exciting than parking disputes and gets a little more than she bargained for. She’s another one who is prime companion material – looking for a challenge and a way to make a difference.

Finally there’s Graham, who reluctantly goes along with everything even though he doesn’t even believe in aliens at first, and if they do exist they certainly aren’t in Sheffield. I love his skepticism, and I love his faith that the bus drivers will know if anything weird is going on (which he’s not wrong), and I love the fact he goes along with things no matter how doubtful or scared he is of this very unfamiliar situation. I look forward to him going waaaaay outside his comfort zone while he travels across the stars.

I could keep going, but there is not a single moment of this episode I did not wholeheartedly love. I think Jodie Whittaker is perfect as the Doctor so far, and I think she has the perfect companions for her version of the Doctor. I love that she’s just as confused by her situation as we are. She wants to know who she is and where her TARDIS went just as much as we do. I love that rush of adrenaline as she’s facing the Big Bad that finally jolts her memory. I love the speech that is both classic and unique where she reveals “I’m the Doctor” before defending the Earth yet again from an alien threat. I love everything about what I watched Sunday, and cannot wait to get to know her better. She is my Doctor, and I will follow her to the edges of time and space for as long as she asks me to.

Why You Should Be Watching Star Wars Rebels

This post has been on the back burner for a couple weeks now, but I think it’s still worth talking about. During Star Wars Celebration it was announced that the upcoming season would be the last for Rebels. While this makes total sense based on where they’re at in the story, it’s still disappointing. In case you thought it was just some kid show on Disney, check out this trailer for the new season.

Yeah, there are plenty of things that kids can love there, but it’s got enough action and heart to make adults happy too. I simultaneously look forward to this final chapter and dread what’s going to happen to these characters I’ve fallen in love with over the past three years.

How Buffy Changed My Life

I’m sure by now you’ve seen plenty of articles online about how Buffy the Vampire Slayer is celebrating 20 years since its premiere. I’m sure you’ve also seen plenty of people tell their stories about how Buffy saved or changed their life in some way. Allow me to be a last-minute addition and share what Buffy means to me (and how it shaped television as we know it today).

BtVS premiered on this day in 1997. I gotta admit, my memory is poor but I’m gonna go out on a limb and say I wasn’t watching this show when I was 9. I know I started watching episodes as they aired at some point, but as far as I can remember the show had already been on for a few seasons. (Don’t worry, I was able to catch up in repeats real quick). Regardless, from my first glimpse of the slayer I could feel her speak to my innermost self. She was awkward, terrible at relationships, and had all the same problems every girl faces, but also was a badass who kicked butt and took names. She was what I already was combined with what I wanted to be. She also was the only female superhero I can think of (other than the girls in the Power Rangers) that I had to look up to. Yeah, I know, there are plenty of other badass ladies out there, but back then I watched a lot of dudes in tights (Superman, Batman, Spider-man) and Buffy. She and Willow were my everything. Yes, the whole cast of Scoobies were great, but they were my favorites.

After watching Buffy (and Angel once that got its spinoff) I started expanding to other vampire/occult offerings. As luck would have it, the show that turned me onto the genre also influenced it. I think it’s fair to say that a lot of the tv and movies you see today would not have had a chance if Buffy didn’t have the success that it did. It masterfully blended the dark and the quirky in ways every television show ever would only hope to achieve. (Charmed comes to mind almost instantly as having similar qualities). It also was the jumping point for a wonderful career for Joss Whedon, as well as many of the cast members. Joss jumped from Buffy and Angel to Dollhouse and Firefly, the latter getting a cult following that might even surpass Buffy levels, before eventually getting to jump into the Marvel Universe with Avengers. Suddenly one of my favorite creators in the industry was in charge of the only genre I love as much as the vampire/magic stuff: superheroes.

Backstory: I learned to read with comic books, and some of the first television I remember watching were cartoons based on those comics. Even today, most of the television I watch is the CW lineup of superhero/comic book related programming. Supergirl, Flash, Arrow – the genre has gotten a big bump with the success of the Marvel films. I also think that CW (formally WB) has been a leader in focusing on “nerdier” fair. Kids WB was my go-to for cartoons as a kid because of how many hero type shows it had, Buffy and Charmed (as well as many others) were WB primetime staples back in the day, and now it continues with the lineup of hero shows I already mentioned. Of all the shows I’ve mentioned, however, I think Buffy was the most significant. And based on how much people have been talking about this anniversary today, I think the masses would agree.

Thanks for letting me ramble for a bit. It’s been over a year since I’ve been inspired to write anything, but it feels appropriate that Buffy Summers finally pushed me into action. She was an inspiration to many. May she continue to do so for 20 more years and beyond.

Buffy-Vampire-Slayer

Arrow: The Offer

Yesterday I promised a review of the return of Arrow, and I always do my damnedest to keep my promises. While last night’s episode may not have blown me away like the return of The Flash did, it still made me smile enough to be worth a brief post. There are some spoilers in this one but not nearly as bad as my review of The Flash from yesterday (although based on previews for the next episode it looks like none of that awesome stuff will have happened because timey whimey, which will be simultaneously awesome and infuriating if that becomes true). Still, if you haven’t watched yet you might want to hold back on reading this until you do.

Last night’s episode of Arrow picks up where the last one left off: with Oliver being offered the honor of becoming the heir to Ra’s al Ghul and taking over the League of Assassins one day (which Nyssa finds out about and doesn’t like one bit). I love the relationship with Ra’s and his daughter, how badly she wants his approval and her constant struggle to balance that with the love she feels for the now late Sara Lance vs how much her father disapproved of that relationship).

Here is one difference with the returning episodes of Arrow vs The Flash: Where Flash started off like a typical episode and cranked things up at the end, Arrow had a strong opening and closing but the middle was just another Wednesday for our team. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the episode and the middle part of the story made the ending possible, but I definitely was looking for a more constantly tense episode than I got. I will say that I liked the fact they had Arrow consider Ra’s al Ghul’s offer throughout the episode and made Oliver question why he still does the hero thing. I assumed after his struggles he would accept the offer and live to regret it, but instead they’re going to make him deal with the consequences of denying Ra’s something he wants. I doubt many people can get away with that without some consequences. I assume the rest of the season (or at least a good part of it) will be about Ra’s convincing Oliver to reconsider his decision until he finally relents. Oliver thinks he’s lost a lot in his journey as Arrow, but I have a bad feeling he’s going to see how much he has left to lose still. We’ll just have to wait and see…

The Flash Blasts Back

The Flash returned to our tv viewing schedules last night, and boy did it come back with a bang.

WARNING! MAJOR SPOILERS IN THIS POST. YOU HAVE BEEN WARNED!

 

 

At first last night’s episode was just like any other. You had the usual tension caused by Iris and Barry’s dynamic, plus the meta-human villain of the week. Except this villain has a personal beef with Det Joe West. While this fact alone causes added tension within the episode, things really get cranked up to 11 by the end. Within the last few minutes we get

  • Joe being captured and Iris being told “come alone or daddy dies”
  • Cisco finding out the truth about Dr Wells and being killed by his mentor and father figure
  • Iris confessing her love to Barry and the kiss we’ve been waiting for since episode 1
  • Iris finding out Barry is the Flash in a way that does not involve an awkward conversion or added cheesiness (I assume that comes later)
  • A giant wtf ending that will leave you wanting more

So to conclude: The Flash cranked things up to the next level with last night’s episode. Here’s hoping 1) they can continue with this momentum through the end of the season, and 2) Arrow brings a similarly badass opener for their return tonight. If they do, you will be hearing from me again about our other costumed star tomorrow.

The Flash Zips Into Viewers Hearts

Warning: this review of the series premiere of The Flash has mild spoilers that would be more enjoyable if left unexpected. You might want to wait until after you’ve watched before you continue reading. Thank you.

The Flash premiere was last night on CW, and I have to say that it impressed me right from the start. You’d think the beginning would be boring for those who watched the same events on Arrow (where they first introduced the character) but Barry is so lovable that it’s hard to picture ever being bored watching him. Side note: who else loved the fact Jesse L. Martin from Law & Order is currently playing the main cop on Flash now. Guess he just fits the type. All jokes aside, it’s great to see him again after L&O was canceled just shy of making it to longest running show. I’m also enjoying that The Flash feels like it’s own show while hinting at its connection to the Arrow universe without simply feeling like a spinoff series. There are enjoyable references to Barry’s time on Arrow, but overall the show has it’s own flavor that I quite enjoy (and certainly has piqued my interest more than Gotham has so far). Even the conversation he has with Arrow feels like a respectful nod more than a push to connect it to an already established winner. I definitely think this is going to be high on the list of new series to stay tuned with this season.

Gotham & AoS Premiere Reviews

One of the more anticipated series of this season, Gotham, premiered this Monday on Fox. I finally got around to watching it today and am a bit reserved in my reaction. It definitely had it’s moments, but it seems to be a police procedural with Batman characters tossed in to arouse the audience. Don’t get me wrong, it’s cool seeing little Ivy and the rest of the lot, but I think the series is going to need some time to develop if it’s going to be a success. Considering the first season of Agents of SHIELD, it is entirely possible that Gotham runs a similar path and gets exponentially better as the season progresses. I guess we’ll have to wait and see.

Speaking of AoS, that series saw it’s second season premiere last night, and boy was it a doozy. We got to see how our team is handling the current state of things, and I’ve got to say that some are doing much better than others. I can tell it’s going to be a steep uphill climb to get things back to normal, or whatever the hell is going to pass for normal once we get there. I’m really looking forward to seeing what twists and turns we’re in for this season. If it’s even half as good as the last third of S1, then I have faith we won’t be disappointed.

2014 TV Wrap-up

Full disclosure: I don’t exactly watch all of the tv, but I do watch two of the big ones – SHIELD and Arrow. I took note of some of the moments that got me excited and angry (as well as a few other comments I had overall) that I’m going to share with you. At first I thought this would be a quick post but there’s a lot to cover, especially with SHIELD, so this might be a long one. Just like your favorite shows though, it has to last you until fall when I can talk about the season premieres and how glad I am to have my favorite characters back. Btw, it should go without saying that there are MANY HUGE SPOILERS AHEAD, so if you haven’t watched either of the two shows I mentioned then you should probably stop reading and go fix that fact. Now, without further ado, let’s get started…

On Agents of SHIELD there were several moments where my heart skipped a beat or two. Honestly the whole episode was great (well, mostly, but we’ll get to that at the end). The first moment I honestly screamed at my TV though was when Agent Fury appeared just in time to save Fitz and Simmons from a watery death. After that it was pretty much nonstop action and a lot of cheering on my part. Things I loved about the last episode include:

  • May finally getting the chance to kick Ward’s ass
  • Fury and Coulson meeting during the big fight against Garrett (I love how casually Coulson is like “we need to talk but I guess now is not the time”)
  • Peterson turning sides once he knew his kid was safe

And finally, making us think Garret was coming back and then killing him again right away put a HUGE SMILE ACROSS MY FACE.

There were also some other less specific things I loved about the show. For one, I loved all the snarky jokes in the midst of all the tension. It felt good to be able to stop holding my breath and laugh for a few moments. I also loved when Coulson and Fury finally got to have their talk. Most of all I love how this show is able to switch from tense to funny to sentimental and always make it feel natural. Despite all the fantasy elements in the series, the characters themselves always manage to remain very human, which is a nice touch that is able to make the show more relatable to it’s audience.

Final thoughts: If I rated SHIELD based on this episode it would get 5 stars. Usually it’s about 4 , but they definitely kicked it up a notch for the big finale. I’m really looking forward to watching Coulson rebuild SHIELD next season. My only semi downer remark is that I wish the final shot was of the team all together in a line after they meet Billy or the picture of Sky. The actual last scene left me scratching my head more than anything. I’m not sure where they’re going with this but we have plenty of time for wild specualtion till the show returns in the fall…

 

Whew, that was a lot and probably could’ve been it’s own post. Sorry but when I first had the idea to do a tv wrap-up, I didn’t think it would take that long to dissect just two shows. Everybody take a breath and get ready to dive into Arrow, which is basically going to be me saying how I didn’t like most of what was happening until I realized why it was happening. And on that note, let’s begin…

First let’s start with a like (well, partially). I enjoyed seeing the League of Assassins come in to help fight Slade’s army. My first reaction when I saw them was excitement followed by the thought, “I hope this doesn’t mean Sara made a deal and is leaving with them when this is over.” Of course that’s EXACTLY what happens, which was both predictable and a little disappointing.

Another thing that was somewhat predictable and disappointing was the way things ended with Roy and Thea. As soon as Roy said “I’m never losing you again” I knew something bad had to happen to screw everything up. The part that was a slight surprise to me was Thea finding the arrows under Roy’s bed. Of course she makes the wrong conclusion and runs off. Now for the part that actually made me angry about this episode: After finding the arrows she decides she can’t trust Roy or anyone else… so she runs off with her father who she just told to go “shove it” and assumedly is going to become a villain with him next season. I liked her arc of going from party girl to an actual decent human being, and I don’t want to see her turn away from that now. Hopefully this is just a slip-up (which everyone has on occasion, although not nearly as big) and we will be seeing her realize her mistake over time and shut her father down.

Now for the two biggest points to talk about here: the “no more killing” story arc and how it relates to the end of Slade Wilson. Now, as you may have noticed, most of this season has been about the Arrow making the choice to stop killing. At first the fact that Felicity kept pushing this while everyone else told Ollie to end things for good because Slade is a monster who gets no more chances was somewhat annoying to me. Don’t get me wrong, I enjoyed the fact that Ollie was becoming a better kind of hero, but I figure there are exceptions to every rule and Slade definitely should be one of them. That was how I felt right up until the end when everything started to come together for me. To continue though, I need to break down a couple other things I didn’t like at first but eventually started to get behind. Sorry if this is disjointed but that pretty much sums up the jumps my brain had to make to wrap itself around this episode.

1) At first I didn’t like Ollie telling Felicity he loved her (it felt too forced) or the setup of Ollie choosing between the two women he loves, but I did enjoy the turnaround at the end. Having it all be some kind of plan is way less boring or predictable. Way to play me, Arrow. (Side note: Even though I’m not sure I want Felicity and Ollie getting together, it really did break my heart a little seeing how disappointed she was that it wasn’t real. We’ve all been there, girl.)

2) I didn’t really like the flashbacks until the end when we flash between the Ollie-Slade battle in the past vs the one in the present. It was great to finally see the chance Ollie had to give Slade the cure but chose to “kill” him instead. Seeing that and then flashing to now when he has the same choice again finally made me ok with the choice not to kill him this time.

 

So there you have it, my TV wrap-up. The only other comments I might make is that I enjoyed the SHIELD finale more than just about any season finale of any show ever. It had lots of excitement and was completely satisfying. It didn’t ever try to make me angry with some awful cliffhanger to bring me back next season. Meanwhile, while I eventually ended up liking where Arrow went with it’s last story for the season, I didn’t appreciate Laurel’s father suddenly falling down and possibly dying in the last few seconds. “Oh no, now we have to wait till the fall to see if one of the main characters lives”. Either way this is going to make me angry, because either he ends up fine and you worried us for nothing, or you kill a main character for no reason when you already wiped out half the cast during Slade’s recent rampage. So yeah, not a huge fan of the Arrow finale but I loved the story arc they did leading up to it enough (and also want to see how they rebuild from all the destruction) that I’ll be seeing them next season. Agents of SHIELD definitely won season finales forever though, no doubt about it.

24: Live Another Day

Jack Bauer must be made of the same stuff as James Bond, since both of them never seem to stay down for long. Four years after the series seemed to be over, 24 is back in all its glory. Of course you get our hero Jack Bauer and his partner in crime Chloe O’Brien, but you also get a slew of fresh faces to decide whether to love or love to hate. Here are some likes, dislikes, and general comments I had watching the season premier. (PS: sorry this is late but I was on vacation until yesterday. And by that I mean, sorry not sorry.)

Love:

  • Chloe’s new look
  • how Bauer breaks Chloe out
  • the one getting kicked off the team is the only one who notices Bauer is up to something
  • seeing Bauer back in action. From breaking Chloe out early in episode 1 to the scene towards the end when he goes after Yates (“You probably think I’m at a disadvantage. I promise you I’m not.” *kicks ass and takes names*) Bauer is still pretty badass.

 

Love to hate: the agent who seems to hate Agent Kate for no reason (except possibly smelling blood and wanting her job or the association with her husband the traitor)

 

Criticism: after all this time Bauer isn’t able to consider Chloe a friend? even she tells him he should’ve just asked for help, which is spot on.

 

Questions: did Bauer save Chloe to help a friend (which he himself said he doesn’t have friends) or to use her to get something he wanted. I’d like to think it was a little of both but I have to wonder.

 

And finally, in the category of “unsure how to feel”… Chloe has always been kind of pouty, but playing the “boo hoo, don’t judge me” card with Jack feels wrong for her character. You’re stronger than that goddamnit!

 

As you can see, a lot of my comments are about Chloe. That’s because next to Jack she’s one of the only characters in the series that really stood out for me. I’m sure I’m not alone in feeling this way, which is probably why she’s the only regular who has survived from Day 1. As long as I have her and Jack interacting with a new batch of interesting characters, I feel confident this season is going to be as enjoyable as seeing an old friend who’s been gone for awhile. Hopefully the friend doesn’t get boring after the novelty of first seeing them wears off. If so, I think we’ll be in for a hell of a ride this season.

Breaking News: Stephen Colbert to replace Letterman

It’s official, folks – rumors that Stephen Colbert might be taking over for Letterman at the Late Show have finally been confirmed. I know I’m supposed to be excited about the news, but I have mixed feelings about it. Negatives first, so I can end on a positive note.

Really I only have one problem with this announcement, and that is Colbert seems like he is better suited for his current show on Comedy Central than he is for one of the late shows on basic cable. There are certain restrictions he will have at his new home that he wouldn’t have on CC. Don’t get me wrong, I’m sure he couldn’t get away with whatever he wanted, but I’m also sure he could get away with a lot more. I would hate to see some of his creative energy stifled because of this change.

Now, having said my one concern, let’s move to the positive. This move means that Colbert is really moving up in the world. He’s got some big shoes to fill replacing Letterman, but I have faith he will do great and win over a lot of new fans. I was also happy to see EW reporting that he plans on moving his creative team from The Colbert Report over to his new show. It’s good to know he doesn’t plan on leaving behind the team that helped him get to where he is today. Kudos Mr. Colbert for keeping it classy (while still remaining brutally honest AND funny). I truly wish you the best in your new endeavor.