Quickie: Terriers update

I finally caught up with Terriers today. It's absolutely one of the best shows on television.

I wanted to comment briefly on "Sins of the Past", the most recent episode. It was written by one of my favorite TV writers, Tim Minear. I love this guy so much because he's so good at the flashback episodes. On Angel, he wrote one of my personal favorite episodes, "Are You Now Or Have You Ever Been" in the second season, which had Angel dealing with guilt stemming from an event at a Hollywood hotel in the 1950s. Firefly gave us "Out of Gas", widely considered a fan favorite episode -- this one handles the gradual gathering of Serenity's crew interwoven with an old-fashioned "the ship is sinking!" plot.

"Sins of the Past" deals with some serious pieces of business, too. With the help of the journalist Hank saved in "Asunder", Hank and Mark bring closure to an old case of theirs involving a serial rapist -- significant because it's the case that ended Hank's career as a cop (and arguably also his marriage). Britt, meanwhile, gets really drunk and beats up Katie's classmate, assuming that he's the guy she slept with. Back in the slammer with you, and right back to the doghouse for Hank and Britt as Hank spills that he knew about Katie's drunken affair.

It's a bitter episode to get through, but rewarding in the end -- not unlike "Are You Now..." or "Out of Gas". I think it'd be a worthy endeavor to compare and contrast these three episodes for tonal consistency, structure, and content. Minear's a very talented writer and I'd like to dig a little deeper into the episodes he's written. In the meantime... tonight's Glee night. Cue audible sigh, Joss Whedon-style.

Reflections: Human Target 2.01 "Ilsa Pucci"

Good to have you back, Human Target. There aren't a lot of shows on television that do what you do best.

The season two premiere was a welcome return for the show that no one watched last season. The cliffhanger from the season one finale wraps up quickly, but I'm willing to accept that in exchange for two new characters and a shift in character arcs that will definitely be for the better.

The episode is about Ilsa Pucci, and so to the extent that she is a) interesting and b) useful, the episode does a good job of establishing her within Chance's world. This comes at the expense of the other new character, Ames, who gets only brief moments of character-building with Guerrero (whom she knows by name) and Winston (who arrested her five times when he was a cop). I don't expect that to last; at the same time, just these tiny mentions of her character's history makes Ames my favorite part of the episode.

Matt Miller was definitely the right man to take over this show. His experience on Chuck can help him maintain the show's action-movie style and pacing while simultaneously bringing in more solid character development. I am sad to see McCreary leave the show (and frankly, the new title theme isn't nearly as catchy as McCreary's verison -- why the unnecessary guitars?) but Chuck composer Tim Jones underscores the moments just right, making a smooth transition from McCreary's awesome themes.

Most of all, I'm just happy to be watching Human Target again. It's an incredibly fun action show with a great cast and fantastic visual flair. I enjoyed this week's episode, as I'm sure I will enjoy this season, for however long it lasts. (Let's hope the American Idol numbers mid-season give it a shot at season three!)

Review: The Walking Dead 1.03 "Tell It To The Frogs"

Two narratives dominate this week's episode of The Walking Dead. One, incidentally, is about narratives -- the stories we as humans tell each other as part of the building of community. The other narrative is about the great divide between old traditions and new methods of living life. Both narratives are linked by Rick Grimes integrating into the camp, and by the camp itself and the divisions within it.

The plot of this episode is driven largely by the first narrative. The primary dramatic conflict is in the scene at the quarry, where Lori ends her fling with Shane. "You don't tell me what to do" and "That's over too, you can tell that to the frogs." The titular phrase appears, representing a story that can fall on deaf ears for all anyone cares. The use of stories here is quite complex -- Lori tells Shane to knock it off so she can feel better about herself, devoting herself more to her family, but only because Shane told her Rick was dead so that he could have an honest shot at her (and as Rick himself points out at the campfire, everyone had perfectly good reason to believe he was dead). Similarly, T-Dog continually points out that he chained the door to the roof so Merle Dickson would not get eaten by Walkers, but only to make himself feel better about having to abandon Merle after accidentally losing the key to the cuffs. These stories are meant to be small comforts, but like Glenn's shiny new car, both the Walkers and Merle can deconstruct the story simply by being unpredictable. And since Walkers aren't capable of higher brain functions, guess who gets to be unpredictable.

Meanwhile, a different narrative is taking shape: how do you start society over again? The survivors are having a difficult task of reconciling the way things used to be with the way things are. From the cuckolding to Ed's misogyny to Glenn's reckless behavior with a blaring car alarm to the unfortunately archaic divisions of labor, there is a minor struggle going on in realizing that luxuries such as coffee makers and washing machines no longer exist. This theme takes a particularly disturbing turn when we consider the depictions of brutal violence as a means of enforcing these traditions. Certainly, the Walker that gets Daryl's deer can't really be considered a human being anymore, but in this instance, it represents humanity, beaten and beheaded by human beings -- which is all the more disturbing when Daryl walks in a few minutes later and admonishes them for not finishing the job: "Do y'all know nothing? It's gotta be the brain." Later, Shane's anger at losing Lori erupts all over Ed's face when Ed takes a smack at his wife for being insubordinate. The resulting violence is horrific, and Shane promises to beat Ed to death next time if he ever lays another hand on his wife or daughters. The message is clear: violence begets violence. This is why Rick's decision to go back for Merle is a positive one. Yes, Merle is a "douchebag" (Shane's word, and he chose it carefully) and horribly racist, but he's a human being, and Rick won't let him die chained to a rooftop like an animal. Rick is willing to preserve humanity -- at great personal risk.

"Tell It To The Frogs" gives us an insight into the group dynamics of the survivors' camp. Some are old, some are young; some are college-educated, some are not. They all say they want to live, but their actions tend to speak otherwise. Dale puts it best: "Words can be meager things. Sometimes they fall short." If this holds true, then Merle may truly walk out of this scenario alive -- if he's willing to cut off his hand to get out of the cuffs, he's willing to do anything to survive. I wonder how many of the survivors can say the same.

Review: Glee 2.07 "The Substitute"

Remember when Glee used to have fun and also have interesting character moments? Me too. It was the last time Ian Brennan wrote an episode. Just when I'm ready to doubt him (as he is my favorite Glee writer -- full disclosure), he gives me Singin' in the Rain mashed up with Umbrella.

He also giveth Gwyneth Paltrow, who steps in as the substitute glee club/Spanish teacher when Will gets sick, rather ingeniously, as a side effect of Sue's recent ploy for power. The episode then spins from there, giving great moments to Will and Terri (the latter coming to Will's house to "make him feel better", which includes his favorite movie Singing in the Rain (obviously) and the patented massage-which-then-turns-into-sex-because-pure-sensuality-does-not-exist-in-fiction-ever) and the rest of the club.

A lot of people will probably take issue with this episode, but aside from Kurt's "way to buck the stereotype" line to Blaine at Bread Sticks (because it points out how oblivious the show is to how stereotyped Kurt himself is), this episode was a marked improvement over "Rocky Horror Glee Show" (an abomination I will never mention by name again -- like Volde- I mean, He Who Must Not Be Named) and "Never Been Kissed" (an attempt to bring a real issue to the foreground falling flat due to its cliche structure). Say what you will about Gwyneth Paltrow or Terri Schuester, this was a fully-functional episode of Glee, complete with fun musical numbers (and the audacity to attempt to live up to Gene Kelly -- impossible, but I appreciated the effort) and some of the best versions of the characters. Funny, the element of the episode I was most worried about, the mini-mes, turned out to be a hilariously brief segment pointing out the broad, one-dimensional aspects of the characters, which if nothing else shows that Glee has made some progress in becoming a real boy.

I'll take any of the above over a botched "Time Warp" any day of the week.

Quickie: Monday, November 15, 2010

Chuck 4.08 "Chuck vs. the Fear of Death"

Ah, glorious synergy. Chuck's fourth season has bounced back and forth between straight spy narratives and artificial relationship problems, not to mention lacking any good Buy More stories, but tonight's episode nails the show's core themes once again. I love the extremes the show is willing to go to enhance the effect Chuck's mom had on the Intersect, a now-defunct piece of junk in Chuck's head. And it can still sow seeds in the Chuck/Sarah relationship without feeling artificial, a much-needed improvement from, say, the wedding ring "cliffhanger". Buy More was fantastic -- Summer Glau shines by doing a version of Cameron from Sarah Connor Chronicles, and she plays well against Morgan and Jeffster. Call me crazy, but this was really good.

Lie To Me 3.07 "Beyond Belief"

This was a marked improvement from last week's episode (and yes, I didn't review it fully -- I'm just a tad behind). I'm becoming privy to how one-dimensional the characterization of "Lightman-Group-as-family" really is, but the show leans more on Emily this week, and I adore Emily, so I was very satisfied. The main story was rather predictable, but I liked David Sutcliffe's portrayal of Stafford. Without any other recognizable stories, though, the episode was a bit... boring. I'm considering dropping the show from my Reviews category, as everything that used to thrill me about the show is no longer here. (I'm guessing that's at least partly related to Shawn Ryan's departure as showrunner -- why does that man make such damn good television?)

The Walking Dead 1.03 "Tell It To The Frogs"

Yes, at long last I caught an episode of The Walking Dead live! And how! From teaser to cliffhanger, I was hooked. Expect a more detailed review later this week; in short, I'm very happy with the changes made from the comic book, as they provide new nuances to what I still expect will be the ending of this first season. In any case, it's already providing the survivors with solid characterization, which I know was a gripe many people had with last week's "Guts". This show is hitting all the right notes, and I'm absolutely tickled. Got issues with that? Tell it to the frogs!

Review: The Walking Dead 1.02 "Guts"

It should surprise no one that The Walking Dead's second episode, entitled "Guts", is about fear. The fear of not knowing where your husband/wife/son are. The fear of someone different from you in some way -- skin color, or the smell of your clothing. The fear of losing communication with your fellow human. And of course, the visceral fear of death, pouring from every frame of this episode.

The plot is simple enough -- Rick, trapped in a tank, makes contact with another human being named Glenn. This leads him to more survivors, giving him his first true glimmer of hope. But they have to get out of the city to get back to camp, and therein lies the rub -- trapped in a department store in the middle of town, fear comes alive. Dickson, the sniper, makes a racist comment towards T-Dog, a black member of the group in charge of radio communications with the survivor camp. When the decision comes on who should explore the underground options for escape, Glenn wants to go alone, because he is afraid that more people will only be more detrimental to survival. (His fear of the unknown, and staring down into it, evoked the final image of LOST's first season for me -- the man of faith and man of science staring down into the Hatch, a metaphor for the journey of humanity.) Ultimately, Rick and Glenn lather up in zombie guts, plastering themselves with the greatest fear they've come to know: the Walkers. And let's not forget Lori, whose fears of an uncertain future for herself and her son Carl leads to an illicit romance with Rick's buddy Shane. The marriage ring, still hanging around her neck, is no longer a symbol of love, but of loss, and the fear of future loss.

I've got to give my props to Bear McCreary this week. I think he's a brilliant TV composer, and he's really making full use of his talents here on this show. Just as our worst fears tend to come from the things we can't perceive (as for instance the Weeping Angels in Doctor Who, or the Gentlemen from the Buffy the Vampire Slayer episode "Hush"), McCreary enhances the visceral experience of watching the show by being selective about where his score is placed. The silence is frightening because we don't know where to look next and have no guidance from the music to help us; the music is frightening because it can mask the groans of the Walkers, or the emotions of the characters, who, faced with uncertainty and fear, are in constant conflicts with their own ids.

"Guts" is very bleak because it is representing different characters reacting to the same situation based on the same emotion. Dickson resorts to violence and racism, attempting to maintain his own personal lifestyle choices at the expense of the community; Lori surrenders hope that Rick is alive and makes plans for a future with Shane and Carl, but she keeps her wedding ring around her neck. Even Rick himself is driven by fear -- he has no idea if Lori or Carl are still alive. But he lets Dickson live, and he permits the shoplifting of jewelry from the store, because he has more than fight-or-flight instincts going for him -- he also has hope, courage, willpower. And though the moments are rare (and usually involve Dodge Challengers and joyful Glenns), the group is thankful for Rick's appearance, because he represents a humanity that doesn't end just because the world does. He even hates that Dickson ultimately gets left behind, which is contrast to how the survivor camp reacts to the news that the group got stuck in the middle of Atlanta. To the survivors, that group is as good as dead. To Rick, there's still hope for Dickson.

As many Americans will argue, of course, "hope" is just a buzz-word. But we'll see how this story develops in the weeks to come. In the meantime, "all I am is a man looking for his wife and son"... and we should all be afraid of that fury.

Reflections: Bones 6.06 "The Shallow in the Deep"

Bones has really been having a great season. Hannah's turned out to be a fantastic character, someone we can all love -- even Dr. Brennan. Establishing Hodgins and Angela as the "it" couple have helped give the show a more home-y feeling that allows it to continue to stay aloof of most crime procedurals by just being about the characters. And this week, Tamara Taylor shines!

I loved the subtlety of this episode, because call me crazy, but I don't think Bones does "subtle" all too often. This episode, though, was about a lot of things, without ever really forcing those things to work together as one. This is good -- one problem I had with this week's Event and Glee was how contrived the plot's themes were. The stories were deliberately intertwined so as to attempt to make the episode "click" as a singular unit. Unfortunately, when you have a bunch of those to balance, contrivance becomes commonplace.

But Bones has grown to fight contrivances, and it has succeeded mightily. The theme -- of the old adage "never let 'em see you sweat" or the psychological concept of face-saving -- plays out differently in different characters' hands. Cam, faced with identifying the remains of the slave ship that carried her great-grandmother, strives to act calmly and rationally in front of others. As she plays out her leadership role, she cannot care too much about the skeletons that lay their secrets bare before her. But in the end, she gets that one moment -- when she hesitates to say "Hany Beaufort", she solidifies her role as leader by being allowed that one moment of public weakness. And how calmly she moves on afterward. What a beautiful scene.

As for the main case: On the surface, it's about continuing to show viability as a productive human being in the face of humanity's mortal enemy: aging. Booth's body is showing some wear and tear -- which Brennan is only too happy to point out in great detail, including the one time "that obese woman shot you", referencing S3's stalker-lady -- but he trudges on, working the case of a foster kid caught up in a "cougar cruise", which is exactly what it sounds like (and no, I don't mean a spin-off of Cougar Town featuring Bobby and Travis on the open sea). But on another level, this case was about how people perceive you versus how you want to be perceived, regardless of age, gender, sexual identity, and so on. Even the foster kids -- the victim, Liam, and his buddy from the system Hunter Lang -- deal with their self-perceptions, though through wildly different means.

This is sort of what I wish all episodes of Bones were -- but if the horrendous ADR and openly ridiculous cases hadn't come first, we wouldn't have gotten truly touching stuff like "The Hero in the Hold" or "The End in the Beginning" or "The Parts in the Sum of the Whole". As much as people loved him, I gotta say, we've come a long way from Zack Addy. 太好了！(At least three of you just said, "I don't know what that means.")

Quickie: Thursday, November 11, 2010

Fringe 3.06 "6955 kHz"

Cheeky commentary on the LOST numbers aside, this episode was rocking the Christmas tree from start to finish. The cracks are beginning to show in everyone's armor, and the pieces are falling into place both literally (as the team begins to find the pieces of the Doomsday Device that has Peter as a core component) and thematically (as the show deals with Peter's moral dilemma and the problems that face Fauxlivia when she's not the Olivia that spent two years cracking cases with the Bishops). I particularly loved the utilization of Astrid here, and the comparisons between our Astrid and Alt-Astrid were awesome. Overall, a very strong episode of Fringe.

(Quick note: I realize there isn't a review for last week's episode; that's because I got sick. I mean to come back to it with a review later; I'll also be sure to get a review for this Fringe up soon as well. By the way, did you see the promo for next week? HOLY CRAP!)

Community 2.08 "Cooperative Calligraphy"

For once, I am truly glad I chose Community over Big Bang Theory this week. I've come to find that there's a time and place for Sheldon, but the Community study group is FOREVER. And how! This bottle episode was also strong from start to finish, including some of the best jokes I've heard in comedy television in a long time. But at its center, as at the center of all great episodes of television, is a heart of gold... nestled firmly within Annie's Boobs. "Your disappointment will just have to suck it! I'M DOING A BOTTLE EPISODE!" There's just too much to love and me trying to describe it would just devolve into a series of random quotes, so I'll stop here and simply say: YAY COMMUNITY!

The Event 1.07 "I Know Who You Are"

After two weeks of excellent storytelling, The Event drops back to mediocrity again. I can appreciate some of what was going on in this episode -- and I love learning more about Blake Sterling, easily one of my favorite characters so far -- but it all just felt too contrived and "television-y" for my tastes. Zelko Ivanek is on his game as per usual, though -- that scene at the end with his wife and father? Worth the unfortunate high price of admission. The whole Sean/Leila/Samantha story though? I don't have high hopes for it. But we'll see. I managed to hang on for "Casualties of War" and "Loyalty" -- let's see what else this show has up its sleeves.

Quickie: Tuesday, November 9, 2010

How I Met Your Mother 6.08 "Natural History"

Like most, I thought this episode was slow to pick up, but once it did get going, it got going. I love Zoey even more now as a character -- maybe I even want her to be the mother? (Too much blasphemy?) I actually enjoyed the Lily/Marshall stuff this week, particularly the clever way the show uses its setting (a natural history museum) to comment on the passage of someone's life -- like Marshall, who used to want to save the world, but has adapted to his basest needs and essentially phased out older versions of himself because they just can't cut it in the married world. Finally, as always, Barney/Robin shenanigans are fun, but I especially loved the twist at the end regarding Barney's father. I didn't see it coming, but given that a lot of the show was handed to Ted for the night, I guess that was by design. Strong episode.

House 7.06 "Office Politics"

After several uneventful B-plots involving the hiring and firing of a female employee, we finally get a solid member of House's team -- and she's a total weirdo. Fortunately for us, Amber Tamblyn plays the role well, combining elements of the women before her (Cameron's fierce ethical responsibility, Thirteen's unwavering ability to jump face-first no matter the consequences) and throwing in some quirks so annoying that House fires her no less than six times during the course of the episode. Spunky! Unfortunately, the case was just okay -- but hey, Jack Coleman from Heroes!

Glee 2.06 "Never Been Kissed"

Um... well I'm really not sure how to respond to this episode, which is why I won't be posting a more detailed review tonight -- I need time to... ruminate. I will say that, as per usual for Brad Falchuk, the song choice was exquisite -- I particularly enjoyed "Teenage Dream" and the girls' mash-up -- and the episode continues to reinforce my own opinion that Will-as-teacher is much more interesting and useful than Will-as-single-straight-male. (Oddly, Jessalyn Gilsig was credited but never made an appearance -- she did show up in next week's preview though. Deleted scene or honest mistake?) I liked the return of Puck, too -- that made for a great storyline this week.

Lie To Me 3.05 "The Canary's Song"

This is another episode I really need time to think about. The concept of Lightman-Group-as-family was strong -- this week, the group split along gender lines, with Torres and Foster taking the FBI's case (partly because it involved Cal, who got caught up in an illegal gambling ring) while Lightman and Loker run the main case, involving an explosion at a coal mine. Strong performances by the cast and very beautiful shots this week, but aside from the gender split, there wasn't a whole lot of heft to this one. The canary's song echoes inside a hollow shell, if you will.

Quickie: Sunday, November 7, 2010

Quick updates!

First: I am still watching Terriers. I just watched episode 4 "Fustercluck" this week, and I'm already in love with Hank's sister Steph. I really dig this show and will continue to try to catch up with current airings.

Second: Instead of attempting to do the same-night-review-scramble for The Walking Dead, the way I do other shows, I'm going to post reviews for that show on Friday night. I want to really give those reviews some thought, because I know that there's going to be a lot of meat to each episode.

Third: Human Target returns soon! I'll be reviewing it as I loved the first season.

Review: The Walking Dead 1.01 "Days Gone Bye"

What separates zombies from vampires? This is the question facing The Walking Dead, a zombie TV show entering a pop culture landscape overflowing with vampire stories. Fortunately, The Walking Dead's premiere "Days Gone Bye" subverts a couple of the tropes associated with zombie fiction, allowing a new kind of story to flourish in AMC's little corner of cable television.

The first comparative trope: vampire fiction is psychological -- for instance, linking the vampiric bite to the act of sex (a mainstay in Kubrick films) -- while zombie fiction focuses on social commentary -- the cannibalism of humanity, the usual apocalyptic ideals of "what do we do now that society is completely destroyed", and so on. While The Walking Dead will surely offer some excellent social commentary of its own, as it does already in the monthly comic book, "Days Gone Bye" is mostly about the effect these Walkers have had on the primary characters of the episode. Rick Grimes, our hero, wakes up with no idea of what's happened -- but he knows he must find his wife and son. Similarly, Morgan Jones must face his undead wife every night as she prowls around his house, a sad and zombified look on her face. The episode links the two characters together even after Rick has gone his own way -- Morgan cannot bring himself to end his wife, while Rick goes back to a park, bends down next to a zombie, says "I'm sorry this happened to you"... and then pulls the trigger on her. The two characters share empathy for the undead, though perhaps for different reasons. But this empathy is wildly different from, say, a George Romero film, where zombies are the end of all humanity -- depravity, lack of morality, unbridled Freudian id, and so on.

Views of death are another aspect of the zombie/vampire fiction contrast. In vampire fiction, the undead creature (the vampire) is not usually seen as something to be feared -- rather, vampire fiction is characterized by the thrill of being in the presence of something which cannot be killed, which can live forever and provide endless possibilities. In other words, eternal life, though sometimes at the heart of vampire characters' angst (see: Angel), is rarely a bad thing -- indeed, vampires can often be seen as close to human, if not exactly human. Zombies, however, cannot be human. Their eternal life, driven by a barely-functioning brain, is a sickness which must be put down. This was the driving motivation behind Morgan's attempt to shoot his own wife; similar motivations allow Rick to put a gun to one of his former police officer's heads and pull the trigger. It isn't necessarily heartless -- think of the moment in Serenity (the film, not the Firefly pilot episode) when Mal shoots a civilian about to be torn apart by the Reavers. Given the options that civilian had left, Mal chose to end him with mercy, as opposed to being raped, skinned, and worn like a trophy. Rick puts down three particular zombies in tense scenes during "Days Gone Bye" -- the little girl in the teaser, as he's looking for gas; the girl in the park whose bike he was about to steal; and his former colleague at the police station. Again, to the girl in the park, he says, "I'm sorry this happened to you." He's not being facetious, or snarky, or sarcastic -- he is genuinely sorry to this person for what has happened to her, and what he is about to do to her in order to help her. And to not forget that piece of advice Rick offers Duane at the police station: "If you pull the trigger, you gotta mean it. Every time."

So where does this leave Rick? In the teaser from Comic-Con, there's a clip of him saying, "All that's left is a man looking for his wife and son." He is certainly that; he is also the man who will shape the audience's opinions of events as the series progresses. After all, it's not just zombies he'll have to face -- soon he'll be found by the survivor camp, and have to deal with Shane moving in on his wife.

For all its subversiveness, there is one element of classic zombie fiction in the title of the episode. "Days Gone Bye" (also the title of the first trade paperback of the comic book series, by the way) not only references memories of simpler times, but also the notion of days literally being gone -- that time no longer matters in this world. With only five episodes remaining for the first season, I hope that time is used wisely. For now, I'll take this excellent premiere to Atlanta and watch it while hiding in a tank. "Cozy in there?"

Quickie: Thursday, November 4, 2010

Hello, gentle readers. I wanted to post a quick update because I know I haven't posted much this week. That's in part because of the lack of new television (at least of much of the stuff I watch), the fact that I got sick (which means I watched old episodes of my favorite sitcoms mixed with a cocktail of Doctor Who and cold medicine), and the fact that I missed The Walking Dead premiere because I was working a haunted house on Halloween night.

Fear not, though! I should be back and running soon. "Days Gone Bye" re-airs tomorrow night, so I'll have a review up by Saturday. There is a new episode of Fringe tonight as well, so I'll have a review of that up later tonight.

I did also hear the news of Undercovers being canceled. I'm not terribly surprised. Is that bad? Can we just put those two main actors in another show as a married couple? They're really great. I just couldn't get into the pilot all that much.

Quickie: Monday, November 1st, 2010

Just a brief update today; right before elections, and with sweeps now upon us, not a whole lot to watch. Chuck was all-new and I loved it (see below); I didn't get to watch the premiere of The Walking Dead, but it will be repeating on Friday, so watch for a post that night.

Chuck 4.07 "Chuck Versus the First Fight"

Oh goodness. Where has this episode been hiding?! Extremely effective spy plot, dealing directly with Chuck's mom. The best relationship subplot of the entire season. So many plot twists piled up at the end. DO MORE OF THIS, CHUCK. I LIKE THIS.