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Sunday, 17 of November of 2024

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Lost – “The End” (Noel)

All of this matters.”

As this season has proved, Lost doesn’t answer questions very well. Either off-handedly provided (the whispers) or just never exactly satisfying (“Ab Aeterno” and “Across the Sea”), the answers seemed not to matter as much. Indeed, Damon Lindelof’s assertion that “Across the Sea” is how the show does answers indicates this. And, if anything, the finale only reasserts the claim that the answers aren’t ultimately what’s important.

Because there really weren’t any answers (except, for maybe, what the flash-sideways were all about), and I suspect that was the point. The answers, ultimately, don’t matter. Why pregnant women die on the Island isn’t answered. What the Others thought they were doing there (because Ben clearly didn’t have a clue) isn’t answered. Why/How Eloise seemed to know, well, everything, isn’t answered. Who was shooting at Sawyer and the gang in the outrigger isn’t answered (I know many of you were looking for that). Those are just off the top of my head.

But the finale provides a sense of closure, and that’s ultimately what finales tend to do (or at least, it would seem, what people expect from their finales). Closure, however, is a tricky thing in a show like Lost where expectations are different, where it means so many things to so many people. Much ink, actual and digital, will be spilled over this finale, concerning what it meant, how it worked, and whether or not it was a satisfying finale, and as a result, the idea of whether or not the show provides a sense of closure will be the debated issue. Read more »


Doctor Who – “Vampires of Venice”

Why can we see your big teeth?”

“Vampires in Venice” is not a great episode. In fact, of the episodes aired, it’s probably the worst of the lot.

Worst. Stag. Party. Ever.

Spurred on by knowledge that something wicked is coming for the Earth on Amy’s wedding day, the Doctor decides to whisk Amy and Rory (the gawky guy from “The Eleventh Hour”) on a pre-wedding honeymoon to Venice in the 1800s. Truly, what could be more romantic? Well, vampires for one thing. Because we all know vampires scream romance.

While the premise isn’t a great thing, though they do some inventive things with the vampires, the episode itself is a bit of a mess. And this was a concern as the show transitioned to the writer of the week episodes (Moffat doesn’t have an episode on deck until the two-part finale). Could the momentum that Moffat established keep going? The answer, at least this week, is a pretty resounding “No.”

Read more »


Party Down – “Steve Guttenberg’s Birthday”

Partying with The Gutte!”

It’s episodes like this that make me a little bit sad that Party Down may not make it to a third season (at least with the majority of its original cast intact).

Like Being John Malkovich, “Steve Gunttenberg’s Birthday” wouldn’t work if it was “[significantly more recognizable/famous/current actor]’s Birthday.” It has to be Steve Guttenberg or someone like him, someone who used to be really famous and now flits in and out of TV cameos playing variations on the perceived persona, in this case Guttenberg as kind of weird in an overly friendly way (Veronica Mars season 2, anyone?).

That said, the episode is an aberration in the show’s run as the guests are really the crew themselves and Guttenberg’s the one throwing the party. So it creates a new dynamic for the show, but not one that’s bad, just different. And it showcases how well these actors gel with one another.

Read more »


30 Rock – “I Do Do”

It’s possible. Have you ever read Archie comics?”

I’ve talked a bit about the frustration that 30 Rock and HIMYM have put me through this season, and how their respective lead-ups to their respective finales have made me (somewhat) forgiving of their ups and downs this season. The good news is that “I Do Do” (“Oh, grow up, Lemon.”) is a pretty solid end note for the inconsistent season. It’s just a little bit tricky to tell if I’m evaluating this on a curve, or if the episode was genuinely good in the classic 30 Rock sense (and can I say “classic 30 Rock after 4 seasons?).

But the episode remains a delightful one. And with its move to 8:30, behind Community, next season, it at least means I can turn off NBC after 9:00. Thank goodness. Read more »


Community – “Pascal’s Triangle Revisited”

Do you try to evolve, or do you try to know what you are?”

Community is a show that became better as it went along. It was rough going until “Intro to Statistics” (better known as the Halloween episode) and the show hit its stride, figuring out that its voice is ultimately highly referential comedy that also picks apart the sitcom genre. It’s an exciting place to position yourself because so few sitcoms really want to acknowledge their genre, and the ones that do are the animated ones that can do really wacky things (The Simpsons, Family Guy).

But underlining all of that is that the show often still wears its heart on its sleeve, so no matter how meta and snarky it might get, there was always a take away at the end of the episode, something that grounded the episode beyond the hijinks (I’ve written about this ad nauseum). And show how has managed to balance those elements and bring them together into a coherent whole: much like Pascal’s triangle, the snark and the heart add up to equal Community (this is as strong as my math metaphors get).

However, “Pascal’s Triangle Revisited” can’t quite find that balance, and suffers a bit as a result. Read more »


The Good Guys – “Pilot”

Show us all why you’re the second best.”

The comparison I’m about to make probably wouldn’t have happened with the presence of Colin Hanks, but The Good Guys is essentially the premise of the parody/homage that was the 1987 Dragnet film with Hanks’ father, but with an ’80s cop stuck in the current decade (I think) with a straight-laced rookie who has to come to grips with said partner. Indeed, it’s pretty much every buddy cop story ever told just with an incredible mustache.

And normally I’d be all over it, but the pilot episode isn’t exactly great. It’s passable, yes, and there’s potential for improvement here, but I’m not too sure exactly where it intends to grow. Read more »


Lost – “What They Died For”

Did you say there were some other people to kill?”

It almost seems like “What They Died For” and “Across the Sea” should’ve been aired on one night, and perhaps in that order. It might’ve made a bit more sense narratively and emotionally (and perhaps many of would’ve been a bit kinder to “Across the Sea”…maybe). But providing any solid commentary on this, the penultimate episode of the series, seems like a bit of a fool’s errand. It implies guessing what’s going to happen this Sunday, and I’m not one to guess about these things any longer.

“What They Died For” is, thankfully, a solid stepping stone into the finale though. Indeed, the 3 main arcs in the episode, Jack, Ben, and sideways-Desmond, are all very nicely paced and help build back that momentum that “Across the Sea” kind of let fall apart. And I won’t lie: Michael Emerson’s return to the screen made me giddy as a polar bear in a tree. Read more »


The Good Wife – “Hybristophilia”

You like to think that you’re a good person, and maybe at one time you were, but we both know you’ll do whatever it takes.”

Does the show need a villain? No. Am I glad it'll be Cary? Yes.

It’s a bit difficult to describe just how good a show can be. At the very least, you can tell a person that they need to watch a show and hope that they get around to it at some point. If you’re more aggressive, you loan them the DVDs of a show (if available) and hope that person gets around to watching them. If you’re really aggressive, you can tie that person down and make them watch the DVDs.

What can you do, however, to make someone watch a brand new show like The Good Wife? I was slightly badgered by a professor of mine and it just happened that there wasn’t anything on Tuesday at 10 so I tuned in. And with Lost ending this Sunday (must…not…cry…right…now…), I’m so thrilled that I now have a new favorite drama to look forward to in the fall, and, on the flip side, go through massive withdrawals for during the summer.

Because The Good Wife is just that good. Read more »


Law & Order – “Love Eternal”

Everybody’s lying except you?”

How do you make the spiral of the American economy make sense to the American people? Goodness knows that The Daily Show has tried every other week only to have Jon meet someone at Camera 3 and then give up in frustration. It doesn’t make a great deal of sense. And then Law & Order comes around and just nails it.

Instead of stocks and houses, it’s about comic books. And instead of mega-banks inflating their profits, it’s husbands trying to deflate their profits to keep money from their wives. What could be more accessible to American audiences than three semi-geeky guys trying to hide profits from their wives? Read more »


How I Met Your Mother – “The Wedding Bride”

The ‘but’ is that there’s always a ‘but.’

[insert my intro from last week’s 30 Rock here].

It’s like the shows that I used to really love finally heard my complaints and decided to shape up for their last two episodes. Well, kind of shape up anyway. I mean, it’s hard to binge on mediocre to downright awful episodes and then shimmy into that suit or wedding dress that is the season finale. And it’s question that I think we all need to grapple with, regardless of the show we’re watching: Does a good run up to the season finale (and hopefully a good season finale) make up for a lousy season, or at the very least, grant a stay of execution for that show from your schedule for the next season? Read more »