episode review

The Race: The Results! (Finally!)

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At long last, I’ve finished catching up on my tapes, and am ready to declare the winners of this year’s season-long battle for my fangirly heart. Some of my shows let me down this year. Others rose to the occasion. And a rare few delivered action, emotion, and surprises in ways that blew my mis-matched kitty cat socks right off my feet. (Now my toes are cold…)

And so, without further ado, this year’s top winner is…

Supernatural! Yay! It was a surprise to me, because despite a strong season, I just didn’t see this one taking the top spot. The favorites were Castle and Grimm, no question. I definitely felt more excited about those two, leading up to the finales. And then Supernatural just delivered this KILLER, shocker of a season finale, and it totally warped my mind – in a good way.

There are three elements that factor into a show’s final score for the season: 1.) Overall quality of the season, 2.) Surprise factor, and, most importantly, 3.) How badly I want to tune in next season.

Supernatural’s Season Nine was the strongest season since Kripke left. Current showrunner Jeremy Carver seems to have learned from his Season Eight mistakes (e.g. the unrealistic storyline of Sam not searching for Dean), while keeping up an intense season-long mythology. Frankly, I really liked the mytharc in S8, and just thought Carver needed to do better on the brothers’ relationship – which he totally did. Kudos to Carver for listening to fan feedback and incorporating it into his plan for S9. Well done!

Now, let’s talk a little bit about that finale…Whoa. Okay, in the beginning, it was pretty much like a normal ep. A good ep, but not spectacular. The real “wow” factor came in the last few minutes of the episode, as the fight between Dean and Metatron heated up on Earth, coinciding with Castiel’s search for the tablet in Heaven. The way the scene was building, you just knew how it was going to go. Dean had the pulp royally beaten out of him, but he was looking at the First Blade, and it was going to fly into his hand, and at the very last moment, when all hope seemed lost, Cass would destroy the tablet and Dean would stab Metatron DEAD. So, I’m sitting there, all nestled in the couch, entertained but not enthralled, waiting for expected things to come to pass…And then Dean takes an ANGEL BLADE right through the middle of his chest!! What the…???

THAT made me sit up. My eyes got huge and I think I actually said, “Whoa.” So, that was Big Shocker #1. That whole part was great television, building the scene one way, and then veering in a drastically different direction. My attention was riveted in place from that moment onward, because I had no idea how they were going to get out of this – Dean’s injury was clearly fatal. Then Metatron escaped. Fortunately, Castiel took care of him with a clever trap set in Heaven. However, down on Earth, the boys were left in a very dire situation, brightened only by the following exchange:

Dean: “What happened to you being okay with [me dying]?”

Sam: “I lied.”

Aw, Sam – that’s all we needed to hear. That’s all Dean ever needed to hear. I had no problem with Sam and Dean’s relationship this year, because no matter what jerky things they said to each other with words, it was clear all along from their actions that the bond was just as strong as ever. So this exchange, at the end, was just icing for me – sweet satisfaction on top of an already yummy cake.

And then something not-so-yummy happened: Dean died. And I don’t care that they’ve both died about ten thousand times by now, or that it’s obviously not going to be permanent – somehow, these actors still make me care that it’s happening. Their performances keep me in the moment, and bring a little tear to the corner of my eye. 😦

So, Sam takes Dean home, and, predictably, sets about summoning Crowley. Deal time. I settled back into the couch. But then, Crowley was already there, sitting next to Dean’s body. Hmmm. Crowley actually seemed sorry about what had happened, but also strangely excited. As he began to talk to Dean about Cain, I started to sit forward again. The writers had cleverly reminded us, at the beginning of the ep, that Cain was a demon. So as Crowley reached the end of his monologue, the anticipation built to a climax, and I’m betting about 80% of fans, myself included, knew that not only would Dean’s eyes open, but that they would open to reveal pools of jet black.

So, Big Shocker #2: Dean was resurrected as a DEMON. Now, I’ve heard some fans call the end of this episode predictable. I even said myself in the previous paragraph that I knew his peepers would be black when he opened ‘em, and many others likely did, too. So, how is that really a shocker? Because if you’d asked me at the beginning of the episode what would happen, neither dead!Dean nor demon!Dean would be on my list. Because if you’d asked me at the beginning of Crowley’s speech what was about to happen, I still couldn’t have told you that Dean was about to morph into something demonic. I only knew in the seconds before it happened, right when the writers wanted me to know, and not an instant before. That, my friends, is great writing.

And, as with all great finales, we were left with questions that have burned all summer long, filling the air like the sweet scent of barbeque smoke, making our stomachs growl for a taste of Season Ten: How will Castiel survive? Is it possible for him to reclaim his own stolen grace? (Anna did, but hers wasn’t used in a spell). Is Dean a regular demon, or a Knight of Hell? Will he have more loyalty to Sam or Crowley? When and how will Sam find out the truth? Will he be able to cure Dean, or would that be a death sentence, considering the mortally-wounded state of Dean’s body? (Demons can live in dead/dying bodies, e.g. Meg in Season One, but once the demon is out, nature kind of takes its course…) How much human emotion will Dean retain? After all, we’ve seen demons in love (demons in “Sin City,” Cain) and also cases of very loyal demons, like Ruby, demons who have parent-like affection for others (Azazel), and even a demon with a crush on an angel, so the possibilities are wide-open. And I, for one, can’t wait to see where they go with this!

Supernatural Final Score: 9

All right, now that I’ve got the gushing out of my system, let’s look at how the other shows finished out their seasons:

The Mentalist and Castle tied for second place, with Castle leading most of the way, and TM sticking its nose out at the last instant for a photo-finish. Both shows had strong seasons, with The Mentalist’s total creative reboot and Castle churning out one epic episode after another. As Castle drew to a close, we had the emotional arrest of Senator Bracken, the icky politician responsible for murdering Beckett’s mother, and the build-up to the much-anticipated Castle/Beckett nuptials. The Mentalist finished its run with a poignant human trafficking storyline and a hard-core, not-even-a-little-bit subtle push towards a Jane/Lisbon romantic relationship.

While many viewers were probably celebrating this last item on the list, I spent most of the final few eps of TM in Mixed Feelings-ville. It’s not that I don’t like Jane and Lisbon together – I’ve been reading shipper fic since I started watching the show. It’s just…I don’t know whether the writers like Jane and Lisbon together. The nature of the Jane/Lisbon relationship has varied wildly from season to season: gently flirtatious in Season One, strictly friendship in Season Two, platonic but very close in S3, occasional shippy hints in S4 and S5, and finally an aggressive and blatantly shippy S6. Is anyone else’s head spinning?

Castle may have sometimes overbaked its Castle/Beckett UST moments in the past, made the attraction a little too in-your-face obvious, but at least there was never any doubt that these two characters were, indeed, attracted to one another. On The Mentalist, for me, there was doubt. The writing was inconsistent. Rare moments like the “I love you” in the S4 finale were dropped like hot spoons and never picked up again. There was no apparent jealousy on Lisbon’s part when Jane dated Kristina, and as for Lisbon/Mashburn, it was never revealed if Jane even found out, much less got jealous over it. Fanficcers were left to explore these issues on their own. Actors and writers on The Mentalist suggested in post-Season One interviews that the Jane/Lisbon relationship was more brother/sister than romantic, a definite contrast to the Season One interview in which Tunney said that Lisbon probably bought a new pair of shoes for work when Jane started his job at the CBI.

Overall, I got the strong impression that the show had no intentions of ever putting Jane/Lisbon together, and was just throwing occasional bones to the shippers in a sometimes-unsuccessful attempt to make them happy (I know of at least one shipper who bailed early in S2 – she seemed to feel what I did: a complete removal of the flirtation/romantic hints we saw in S1).

And then along came S6. It was clear from early on that the writers were going to “go there.” Which would have been fine, if they took their time and made it natural. I am happy to go anywhere my shows take me, as long as it’s done right. This, however, felt very rushed. And forced – more like a desperate attempt to save the show than something the writers really wanted to do. If they had intended to put Jane/Lisbon together from the beginning, they would have laid a strong and consistent foundation all along. Instead, they thrust Lisbon headlong into a serious relationship with some guy the audience didn’t know (or care about), for the sole and transparent purpose of creating a jealousy storyline for Jane. I felt physically uncomfortable watching Lisbon interact with Pike – I love Lisbon, and here she was, this person I care deeply about, kissing and making plans with a total stranger – not just a stranger to the audience, but a stranger to her. Yikes.

Of course, it wasn’t all bad – we had those gemstone moments in private between Jane/Lisbon, those gut-twisting, all-show-and-no-tell scenes where both characters grappled with her new relationship and the possibility of her leaving. Their dialogue was sparse and simple, leaving emotion to overflow from between the lines. Awesome, powerhouse stuff.

And in the end, with the finale, that’s what won me over. The writing for that last episode was brilliant, and the performances were somewhere in the stratosphere. I’m still not completely comfortable with it, and I’m not sure the writers are, either, but they gave it 100% – everything Jane and Lisbon did in that last S6 ep was in character, from Jane’s trickery to Lisbon’s hurt to Jane’s painful and liberating confession of love. Very sweet, very romantic, very Jane and Lisbon.

The freeze-frame at the end definitely scared me – I mean, it was a nice image and all, but I thought it might very well be the last image of TM I’d ever see. I’m sure the writers were thinking it, too, and were trying to make the ending as happy as possible for a large (but not necessarily the largest) part of the fandom – the shippers. Needless to say, I breathed a long happy sigh when I found out TM was coming back for a Season 7. With all the bold moves the writers made this year – killing Red John, bringing aboard a whole new team, putting J/L together – they deserved a chance to show what they can do with a new year and a totally fresh start.

For me, I’ve never cared so much about how a couple gets together as I do about how their relationship is once they are together. Therefore, I’m way more stoked about seeing how Jane and Lisbon will navigate their new romance than I was about this whole jealousy/engagement thing. I truly can’t wait for next season, and I’m SO GLAD there is a next season. As long as the writers keep it in character, this relationship is going to be SO MUCH FUN!

The Mentalist Final Score: 8.5

Okay, now let’s talk about Castle for a quick sec. Yes, just a quick sec, because I honestly have no complaints here. The resolution to the Bracken storyline was wonderful, emotional, epic. The finale was full of humor, woe, genuine scares, and a flaming shocker of an ending that leaves me wondering who was in the car following Castle, what they did to him, when and how Beckett will find out the truth (he’s obviously not in the fiery wreckage, as she currently believes), and where it will all go from here. Castle is the perfect example other shows should look at when trying to decide whether the main couple should get together, or whether that would ruin the show. The answer: it can ruin the show – or it can make the show stronger, funnier, more romantic, and more exciting than ever! In Castle’s case, it’s the latter, and I’ve never loved the show more than I did this season. I even recently poked my nose into some Castlefic for the first time ever – and was not at all disappointed.

Castle Final Score: 8.5

With a last-minute tie for second, front-runner Grimm ended up coming in third. I loved the end-of-season addition of the new character “Trubel,” a young Grimm with brains, attitude, and some serious fighting skills – she fits right in with our gang without taking away from anyone’s screen time. The storylines all season long were excellent – it’s the perfect popcorn show, and I thought for SURE it would either win the race or at the very least come in a close second. But then something happened. Not something horrible that made me hate the show or anything like that – but just something that made me shave a few points off the final score: the finale.

Was it enjoyable? Yes. Exciting? Totally. But surprising? Not at all. Maybe the blame should fall on the person who put together the commercials for the finale, and not the episode itself, but there was nothing that happened in this episode that you couldn’t predict from the previews. We knew Adalind would replace Juliette. We knew Sean would get shot (still was totally traumatic – he’s one of my favs). We knew Monroe and Rosalie would tie the knot, and it was strongly implied that Nick would lose his powers. Really, the only thing we didn’t know was that Nick and Adalind would actually sleep together – and I don’t count that so much as a surprise moment as I do an “ew” moment. Ew.

Moving forward, I couldn’t be more excited – I seriously cannot wait to find out if Sean survives (he’d better – he’s one of the most complex, intriguing characters on the show), how Nick fares without his powers (wouldn’t that be terrifying, to know these things are out there, and not be able to see them anymore?), whether Juliette and Nick can weather the Adalind storm, and how newlywed life agrees (or doesn’t) with our favorite lovebirds (love-wesens?), Monroe and Rosalie. Also, what’ll Hank be up to next year (me-thinks powerless Nick will need his partner more than ever)?

Despite the predictability of the final ep, it was still a great ride that left me aching to see what’ll happen next. If Grimm keeps up this level of awesome, we may just have a new winner next year.

Grimm Final Score: 8.3

Chicago Fire finished its strong second season in a respectable fourth place. “Reliably lovable” is how I like to think about this one – I sit down, and I know I’ll be entertained. I’ll laugh, I’ll jump, and I might even cry (see “Best Tearjerker Moment” below). The storylines surprise me and make me think – every single time. The characters make me care – every single time. The two-night CF/CPD crossover event was a thing of beauty. Finally, NBC actually delivered something that was both a “crossover” and a “two-night event,” just as advertised. Bravo, Peacock Network!!! I’m so glad it was a two-nighter, too, because I couldn’t have waited a whole week to find out if Shay was okay! And major kudos to Amanda Righetti, because not once did I look at her and think “Van Pelt.” She was a totally new character, and I loved it. They almost had enough storylines with the hospital staff to make a third show: Chicago Medical. Hey, I’d watch it! 😉

The only downside to the two-night event was that it was SO wonderful and SO epic, that the finales for both shows were a little weaker by comparison. I did love that the CF finale focused on Severide, his guilt at overlooking a victim inside a burning building. That was pretty dark, actually, but the Chief’s wedding added some humor and light to balance it out. And of course we had the obligatory cliffie at the end. But overall, it did feel like a regular ep – not the final ep of a pretty dang awesome season!

Chicago Fire Final Score: 8.2

CPD falls just a hair behind its older sister. For whatever reason, CF owns a little bigger slice of my heart. Maybe because I’ve known the characters longer, or maybe just because while cops are out there firing guns and trying to catch bad guys, firefighters are simply trying to save people. There’s an innocence to that, an uncomplicated core of “goodness” we can all relate to. CPD is a great show, but it’s just a little darker, a little meaner, a little less pure than CF. The gruesome death of Jin in the finale showcases this. Antonio’s wife leaving him added yet another shadow to an already pretty bleak season-ender.

Nonetheless, I love the characters, and I’m compelled by the show, especially when it gives me delicious treats like the budding Lindsay/Severide romance. I wanted that so bad, but didn’t let myself hope. It seemed like they were pairing her with Jay, and I figured doing a cross-show romance would just be too daunting for the writers. And then they went there! And my fangirly heart jumped over the moon, landed on the sun, burned to a blackened crisp and was joyfully reborn from the ashes. I ship Lindsay/Severide!! Looking forward to many more scenes between them on both shows…assuming Severide made it out of that explosion…:/

Chicago PD Final Score: 8.1

Honestly, Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. should have ranked higher than sixth place. It is an action movie, a comedy, and a sci-fi masterpiece all rolled up together in a hotdog bun. And I can sum up, in one word, why this show fell so far behind in my race: Ward. I’ve just never liked it when shows take a character you really care about and turn him or her “bad” as a way to shock the audience. It always feels like something that was just done on a whim to shake things up. Now, I do recognize Joss Whedon’s a genius, and I can give him the benefit of the doubt. Maybe he DID plan to have Ward be evil all along. But that doesn’t make the twist any more palatable to me. I feel like I wasted my time getting invested in something that wasn’t real. And that’s probably what I was supposed to feel, because that’s how Coulson and his team felt. The problem is, it didn’t make me like the show more. It made me like the show LESS. Like, a lot less. I missed parts of most of the last few eps, and honestly didn’t care that much. It’s still a great show, but not quite AS great. There’s an emptiness to it, now – a reluctance on my part to become overly attached to characters who might suddenly be revealed as evil to boost ratings.

I do give the writers credit for making Ward a complex shade of gray, rather than a cut-and-dried Prince of Darkness. And yes, the performances were excellent, and the finale did make me laugh out loud when Coulson broke out that huge gun, shot Garrett’s head off, and was all, “Guys, I found it!” Classic Whedon humor. All in all, this show is still very much worth watching, I just hope they don’t make me regret it…again.

Marvel’s Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. Final Score: 7.5

Oddly enough, S.H.I.E.L.D. wasn’t the only show to turn one of its good guys not-so-good last year. Maybe it was something icky in the water? Whatever it was, Beauty and the Beast drank some, too. (Probably didn’t taste very good!) I know I didn’t like the flavor of evil!Gabe after a season of loving him! Yeah, yeah, I know he started out as a bad guy, but still, I thought he’d redeemed himself, and the return of Gabe The Murderer and, ultimately, Gabe The Murdering Beast just didn’t quite sit right in my stomach. Seemed too easy, too uncomplicated: Gabe is bad, and Cat and Vincent are meant to be. End of story. I would’ve liked more layers. I would’ve liked Gabe not to be a total psycho! It didn’t help that I apparently missed an episode. I have no freaking idea how, either – all I know is, Cat got kidnapped and Gabe was still a good guy, and I couldn’t wait to tune in the next week. When I tuned in the next week (or so I thought), Cat was no longer kidnapped, and Gabe was completely evil. WTH???? Not the smoothest transition for this viewer.

Maybe I got abducted by aliens. There was certainly missing time involved – like, a whole week of it. Whatever the case, I shook off my disorientation and tried to enjoy the remaining episodes. Thanks to the charming cast and funny writers, this wasn’t so difficult. I am thrilled X 1,000 that JT wasn’t killed off, and super-pumped about the potentially X-Files-y type supernatural investigations that Cat and Vincent may plunge into next year. Which we will thankfully get to see, since BATB got renewed! Yay!

Beauty and the Beast Final Score: 7.4

And in last place, we have Elementary. Which sounds bad, but considering that I only watch truly awesome shows, even last place isn’t such a terrible spot! When this show decides to bring it, they bring it like crazy. Problem is, they don’t always decide to bring it, and I think we had a bit of a sophomore slump going on last season. Certain moments and individual episodes really sparkled: Bell’s shooting and its aftermath, Gregson’s marital issues, Watson’s kidnapping, Moriarty’s return, Mycroft’s MI6 storyline. But then, in between those moments, we had some dry, unappetizing filler that didn’t seem to have any real direction or taste (other than cardboard).

My RX for next season: More Mycroft! My mom is always complaining about him getting together with Joan, how they have no chemistry. To which I reply: WHO CARES? Honestly, what does it matter if Mycroft has chemistry with Joan? He has chemistry with SHERLOCK. When those two brothers are onscreen, there is a crackle-fire intensity the likes of which I rarely see on TV. The emotions are all tangled up and crazy – the rivalry, the resentment, the jealousy, and yes, deep down, the LOVE. Mycroft returned to MI6 to save Sherlock from prison time. Baffled, Sherlock asks, “Why? You didn’t owe me anything.” Mycroft: “We’re brothers.” Oooh, watch out Sam and Dean – your spot as Top TV Bros may just be in jeopardy…

Elementary Final Score: 7.3

Miscellaneous Mini-Winners (FYI: I just spelled ‘miscellaneous’ correctly on the first try! Go me!):

Favorite Night of TV: Tuesday, cuz it’s got three in a row – S.H.I.E.L.D., Supernatural, CF!!

Best Tearjerker Moment: Tie: Chicago Fire’s heartfelt reunion between a disabled, alcoholic fire chief and the firefighters who once hated him for saving their lives and Elementary’s episode-closing scene between Sherlock and his dead friend, Alistair (Why did they have to kill him off??? And why did they have to write the ep so beautifully??? **sob**)

Here’s hoping for many more memorable moments from all of my shows next season!

May this fall bring on the best race ever!

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Supernatural Review: Episode 8×18 “Freaks and Geeks”

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Review of Episode 8×18: “Freaks and Geeks”
by castiello

Okay, on a scale of one to ten, how excited was I to see Krissy again? The answer: eleveny-forty. That is a really high number that Nathan Fillion made up, but I think it accurately conveys just how much I love Krissy and the actress who plays her, Madison McLaughlin. Krissy is one bad-@$$ hunter-in-the-making, and this was one bad-@$$ episode.

Sammy: Gotta love a guy who can spot a phony surveillance photo. He may be under the weather physically, but his brain is still all sharp and pointy. 🙂 Another thing still intact when it comes to Sam’s character: his hope. Throughout this episode, Sam repeatedly expressed optimism about the possibility of being able to hunt and lead a normal, picket-fence life at the same time. He wanted Victor to be the real deal, and even when that guy turned out to be a crazy mofo, Sam still hoped that maybe Krissy and the other “X-Kids” could manage to stay in school and take on the occasional hunt. I wonder if this is what Sam really wants – not to leave hunting (and Dean) behind entirely, but to find some kind of balance or compromise. The closest thing we’ve seen to a normal or balanced hunting family is Mary with her parents. They lived in a nice house and Mary went to school, but she also went with her family on nearby hunts and was well-trained to handle all manner of monsters and demons. That lasted at least eighteen or twenty years before Yellow Eyes stepped in and everything went down the crapper. So, maybe it isn’t as far-fetched as Dean thinks?

More Sammy Notes: That little look Sam gave Dean when Dean came in and saw Sam tied to the chair – great comedy. These guys don’t even need words anymore, because their expressions and gestures say it all. Sam’s little look said, “Sorry, man – they got me.” I also loved the hilarious moment at the beginning of the episode, when Sam got tired of Dean’s fussing and finally turned the tables around. The minute Sam said he wanted to talk about Dean’s emotional state, it looked like Dean had just taken a long swig of lemon juice. Everything about Dean’s demeanor immediately said “Are you kidding me? No way!” and what started out as a classic emo moment morphed into a laugh-out-loud one instead. It reminded me of the Lord of the Rings joke in the previous ep. That’s one of the great things about Supernatural – they never take themselves too seriously, and they’re always willing to poke a little fun at themselves when things are getting heavy.

Speaking of heavy, though: The fans who are worried about a possible Amelia pregnancy storyline are probably freaking the heck out right now. Several weeks ago, Prometheus (I think it was him) asked Sam what he would be willing to do if his own son’s life was on the line. A hint about an upcoming plot development? Some Supernatural geeks thought so. And now, in this episode, we have yet another character talking to Sam about the possibility of having kids. Victor asked Sam if he wanted to have kids of his own, and Sam expressed uncertainty. Being spoiler-free, I have no idea what to make of this, but it is two separate mentions of how Sam might feel about having kids. I’m not sure I like the idea because I’m not that fond of Amelia, but there might be a few bright spots to a pregnancy storyline: 1.) It would give Sam some strong motivation to survive the trials, since he’d want to live to see – and raise – his son. 2.) The idea of Dean watching out for/protecting Sam’s child is all kinds of hot.

Dean: As always, Dean has a special bond with the kids on this show. And even though Krissy is almost an adult, the connection she shares with Dean is just as strong as ever. Sam, aka Mr. Perpetually Awkward With Children, even left the room so that Dean and Krissy could have a moment to say their goodbyes. And so Dean could have a “talk” with Krissy’s future boyfriend. Dean: “If you ever break her heart…” Aiden: “I know, I know – you’ll hurt me.” Dean: “No, she’ll hurt you.” So true, Dean. So true.

I like how Dean could smell the phoniness of the Victor situation a mile away. His hunter instincts are awesome. Remember back in “Croatoan” when Dean wanted to kill that kid and everyone else said no? Well, that kid turned out to be possessed by a demon, didn’t he? Dean may not be as intellectual as Sam, but sometimes you have to just trust your gut. I’m glad Dean wanted to dig deeper and find out what was really going on with Too-Good-To-Be-True Victor. Also glad to see that Dean was the one who wanted to hunt the vamp nest so the kids wouldn’t have to, and how Dean was the one who talked Krissy out of killing Victor at the end. “We don’t kill humans,” Dean told her. Isn’t this the same lesson Sam taught Dean in “Faith”? Nice to see Dean taking the message to heart, and passing it on to the next generation of hunters.

Randomness: The X-Kids were pretty cool. I liked them all, and I liked the storyline in general. It was a departure from the norm, and I’ve always enjoyed it when the show explores the morality of other hunters that Sam and Dean encounter. We’ve had several hunters who wanted to kill Sam because they thought he was evil. We even had a hunter-turned-vampire who justified turning an innocent girl into a vamp just to trap Sam and Dean. Victor, however, seemed like the lowest of them all. His idea to raise promising young hunters in a stable, non-dysfunctional environment was a good one. Commendable, even. I think murdering the families of those young hunters and turning completely innocent people into vampires for “practice kills” was where he started to lose me. 🙂

Other Notes: The plot was predictable (previews kinda spoiled it), but that didn’t detract from my enjoyment because I cared about the characters and had fun watching them figure out the mystery themselves. The biggest surprise for me was Victor’s suicide. I didn’t see that coming, but it fit with his character and the situation, and in the end I was just glad he didn’t choose to harm anyone else on the way out. If he hadn’t been completely unhinged, Victor might’ve actually done some good in the world. If he’d chosen to locate and care for real victims of random monster violence, rather than “creating” his own victims, this would have been a much different episode.

It made me happy to see Krissy stay with the other young hunters, and even happier to imagine Garth checking in on them. I so wish that could’ve happened onscreen! But since it didn’t, and probably won’t, I guess we’ll just have to settle for tonight’s brand-new episode. 🙂 I do hope we get another Krissy episode sometime in the future, and I really hope tonight’s ep lives up to the previews, because it looks unbelievably cool.

Happy watching!

 

 

Mentalist Review: Episode 5×17 “Red, White and Blue”

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Review of Episode 5×17: “Red, White and Blue”
by castiello

Overall: There are some episodes that make you proud to be a fan. Episodes that take your breath away with a whirlwind of great writing, excellent directing, and stellar performances. Episodes that you actually want to show to other people – people who don’t ordinarily watch The Mentalist – just to give them a taste of the phenomenal series they are missing. This episode fell into that category. “Red, White and Blue” was a shining example of network television at its finest.

Jane: How much do I love it when Jane is kind to vulnerable people? How much do I love it when he uses his impressive skills for something that is purely good, rather than deceptive and morally questionable? Thiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiis much! He was awesome in this episode. Just plain awesome. Every moment he spent with Pete, from helping the young soldier remember Lucy’s murder to teaching him how to create his own memory palace, was sweet and wonderful. I ate it up like a pigeon in a parking lot, chowing on a dropped hot dog bun. Even Jane’s apology sounded unusually sincere. And sincerity, from Jane, is a rare and beautiful thing. My absolute favorite Jane moment in this episode, though, was when he said a simple and heartfelt thank you to all the soldiers who were suffering from traumatic brain injuries. His voice was so soft and rough with true emotion. Simon outdid himself. That big puddle on the floor over there used to be my heart.

Lisbon: Okay somebody needs to make an “Army of Two” banner or wallpaper featuring Jane and Lisbon, because that scene was just too funny. The way they kept on singing the song together made me laugh. And of course, it took all of two seconds for Jane and Lisbon to prove that their team deserved the case. No surprises there. I liked that Lisbon contributed to the sleuthing, so it wasn’t just Jane showing off. Still, I did wonder why Jane couldn’t read the music himself – doesn’t he play the string bass?

Lisbon’s sensitivity and respect toward Pete was a highlight of this episode, just like Jane’s was. You could see it in the gentle way she told Rigsby, “You might have to remind him who you are and what you’re doing…” And when Lisbon tried half-heartedly to insist that Pete was still a suspect in Lucy’s murder, I love how all it took was a look from Jane to make her say, “Okay, fine, he’s not a suspect!” Another great Lisbon moment: she was the one who figured out that it didn’t fit Lucy’s character to file an anonymous complaint. The plot was well-developed enough that I came to this realization right in tandem with Lisbon, feeling like I was investigating the case alongside her.

Cho: Fantastic B-plot, perfectly suited to his character. It was so nice to see him doing something other than talking to Rigsby about Van Pelt. I love great partner moments at least as much as the next person, but Cho was overdue for a solo storyline, and the one he got in this episode was better than I could have hoped for. You could just feel the contempt he had for the irresponsible unit leader. Allowing unit members to get harassed? Not carefully investigating a sexual harassment claim? When soldiers are relying on each other in life-or-death situations, this crap can’t be going on in the background, and Cho knows it. He urged the unit leader to reinvestigate Rose’s claim, essentially telling the guy to “Be someone your unit can respect. Be someone I can respect.” Cho’s salute at the end of the episode said more than words ever could.

Rigsby: Not too much for him to do in this episode, although I did like his line about finding dates in prison. Rigsby’s disgust for the murderer in this episode matched the audience’s. As the doctor went on and on, complaining about his alimony payments and then emotionlessly describing Lucy’s death, you couldn’t help but hate him. Lucy had done so much good, from protecting a fellow soldier who’d been sexually harassed to devoting herself to aiding veterans with brain trauma. The world needed someone like her. To see her robbed of her life by someone so self-involved and generally worthless as the doctor made me a little sick, and I could see that emotion on Rigsby’s face as well. What a waste.

Randomness: Great red herring, showing that one soldier with the box cutter – I thought for sure he was guilty of the murder. The casting and writing in general were superb. I got to know and care about the guest characters, which isn’t something that happens in every episode. Normally when I write reviews, I either have to look up the names of the minor characters, or I simply write, “guy with the leather jacket,” “the victim’s sister,” “the killer,” etc. But in this case, I found that I remembered their names on my own. Pete, Rose and Lucy became as real to me as Lisbon, Jane, Risgby and Cho. My only (very minor) complaints for this episode were: A.) No mention of Van Pelt, and B.) No mention of the events in the previous episode. And honestly, I’m not even sure those are true complaints, because although part of me wanted some continuity, some way to place this episode in the order of the season, another part of me thought it was absolute perfection as an isolated, completely stand-alone story.

Final Thoughts: I’ve said before that I live for the episodes centered on Jane, Lisbon and Co, and am generally not that interested in the stand-alone, “crime of the week” eps. This episode, however, was the rare exception to that rule. Once in a while, when the writing and the directing and the performances all align, we get something incredible, like “The Red Mile” or “Ruby Slippers.” Episodes where I cried for characters I’d only just met, because their stories moved me so deeply. “Red, White and Blue” is another one to add to that list. One of the best eps of the season, and one of the best stand-alones of the whole series.

Mentalist Review: Episode 5×16 “There Will be Blood”

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Review of Episode 5×16: “There Will be Blood”
by castiello

Overall: Raw and gruesome, just like any good Red John episode should be. There was torture, there was murder, there were answers given and even more questions raised. Loyalties were tested. Friendships were tested. Emotions ran high in this exciting and action-packed installment of the Red John Saga.

Jane: For the most part, he made me proud. He’s been doing that a lot lately. In this episode he was truly, visibly upset that Lorelei had killed someone. He felt responsible for her actions, since he was the one who set her free. As Lorelei pointed out, Jane is not as cold-hearted as he would like everyone to believe. This gives me hope for his future. Buckets and buckets full of hope.

Some other things that give me hope: Jane was honest with Lisbon about meeting with Lorelei. Jane said “thank you” to Lisbon for covering his butt (even though he most certainly didn’t deserve it). Jane called Rigsby immediately after figuring out who the Red John minion was. Jane also called Lisbon right away to let her know Rigsby was in trouble, and checked on Rigsby before entering the suspect’s house. As badly as Jane wanted to get inside that house, he put the needs and safety of others above his own personal vendetta. The softer side of our favorite consultant is in full view this season, and I could not be more ecstatic. I know he’ll always be an egomaniac, and I would never want that part of him to change, but his capacity for kindness and empathy gives him balance. Without it, he’s just an annoyingly brilliant detective with a great smile.

Considering how nice Jane was in this episode, it was pretty awful to see him get betrayed like that. It hurt when Lorelei wouldn’t give up Red John. If killing Red John was her goal, why not tell Jane the name and they could hunt him together? It was foolish, going after Red John alone, and Jane told her as much. Of course Red John was watching Lorelei’s every move. He’s always twenty steps ahead. She never even had a chance.

And then, on top of the betrayal, Lorelei shot Jane’s one remaining lead. Watching Jane perform CPR on that guy, hearing Jane’s voice break as he said he couldn’t find a pulse, seeing him yelling and screaming when the paramedics took the guy away…brutal stuff. I can’t even blame Jane for being that paranoid, because he has a right to be. Red John has minions everywhere. Ten bucks says Jane never sees that guy again.

Despite all the hopeful signs regarding Jane’s character, there was one unsettling note. One line that gave me a little shudder – the last line of the episode. After seeing Lorelei’s bloody corpse, complete with the trademark smiley face on the wall, Jane said something to the effect of “She had it coming.” And then he just walked away. Any way you look at that last scene, it’s pretty cold – especially as he had admitted to having some unspecified feelings for Lorelei earlier in the episode. Some interpretations of Jane’s line are more disturbing than others, though. He may have simply meant “Lorelei had it coming because she was torturing and killing people herself.” What goes around comes around, right? Karmic justice and all that. I think Lorelei even said the same thing after she killed Julia in the beginning of the episode: “She had it coming. She helped murder my sister.” Or, maybe Jane simply meant that Lorelei was a fool for taking on Red John alone. She wouldn’t heed Jane’s warning, and ended up dead because of it. She had it coming. But what if Jane actually meant “After stringing me along and betraying me, after denying me what she promised and then shooting my only lead, she deserved what she got”? That one gives me the most chills. I don’t think Lorelei deserved to die just for betraying Jane (if the situation were reversed, don’t tell me Jane wouldn’t have done the same thing), but maybe Jane does think this. And as warm as he was for the whole rest of the episode, he was stone-friggin-cold at the end…

Lisbon: All I can say is, I really hope there was nothing extremely flammable in the vicinity during her scenes with Jane, because I saw some serious sparks. When these two really dig deep, when they peel things right down to the nerve, it’s absolutely electric. Lisbon gave Jane an ultimatum: if you’re going to continue operating outside of the law, you’re going to have to leave the team. Jane countered with the truth: I will do whatever it takes to catch Red John, and you have known this from Day One.

In the end, Lisbon sided with Jane, covering up his meeting with Lorelei and lying about the circumstances of Lorelei’s escape. I honestly can’t blame Lisbon for hiding the truth from the likes of Bertram and Kirkland. Considering all of the inside jobs Red John has pulled off, Lisbon would be a fool to trust her slippery, politics-oriented boss. She would be a complete idiot to trust Kirkland, some guy she barely knows who won’t even explain what he’s doing on the case. Lisbon is smart to put her trust in her team, and her team alone.

I did feel bad about Jane making her an accessory to murder, though. Not just bad – like, really crappy. I believe his claim that he didn’t think Lorelei would kill anyone, but still. It’s a nasty position he’s put Lisbon in, having to choose between her love of the law and her loyalty to her friend. She was in this same exact position with Bosco years ago, and loyalty won back then, too. In this case, I don’t really think Lisbon had enough evidence to turn Jane in, even if she wanted to. But she certainly could have changed the focus of the investigation, and eventually some evidence of Jane’s involvement would have turned up.

At least Jane had the decency to say “thank you.” I get why Lisbon didn’t want to accept his thanks, though – it made her feel dirty. She knows what she did was wrong, even if she had good reasons (Jane is a friend, the person Lorelei killed was a freakish murderer, and Kirkland can be trusted about as far as you can throw a piano). Lisbon is the last person who’d ever want to dress up a crime as a good deed. She was disgusted with herself, and it showed.

As angry as she was, though, we got to see at least as much of Lisbon’s gentle side as we did Jane’s. The tenderness in her voice when she wanted to take over CPR, and that devastated expression on her face as she came up to the attic to tell Jane about Lorelei. Some phenomenal acting on that last bit, especially – I mean, Lisbon didn’t even have to say anything, because I already knew. And the whole scene gave me some major X-Files déjà vu: remember the scene where Scully comes to tell Mulder that Diana Fowley’s been murdered? Same emotion. You could just see it written all over Scully’s face.

Rigsby/Cho: In a dark and twisty episode, at least these guys got some light moments, talking about what “computer stuff” Van Pelt might be up to. And even after Rigsby got hurt, there was still a bit of comedy: Cho “You all right?” Rigs: “Not really…” Cho (to Lisbon): “He’ll be fine.” Of course, Rigsby did not look the least bit “fine” at that moment, but I think the fact that he was talking and saying he wasn’t fine made Cho believe that his partner was okay. With some people, guys especially, they’ll say they’re okay when they’re at death’s door, but moan over a paper cut. If Rigsby was seriously injured, he likely would’ve been more stoic about it.

Bertram: Bertram, you slippery, sly dog, secretly reporting to Kirkland like that. Bertram is one of those characters that I’ll never be able to trust. He’ll always have an ulterior, self-serving motive. Now, whether that motive is to boost his career by catching Red John or boost his career by serving Red John, we may never know. But if I had to leave my life in the hands of Bertram or some random dude on the street, Street Dude’s got it.

Kirkland: Oooh, he’s creeping it up again. I like it! He engaged me whenever he was onscreen, and even seemed to have a weirder look and vibe to him than in his previous appearances. He used to have facial hair…didn’t he? The clean-shaven look is doing wonders for his “ick” factor. I still don’t know if he’s Red John, but at least in this episode I felt like he would do the character some justice.

Lorelei: I’ll miss her. Yeah, I know, I’m one of about two fans who actually liked this character, but I’ll miss her, nonetheless. I’m glad we got to see so many sides of her in this episode – we saw someone who’s a ruthless murderer, someone who is comfortable torturing others, someone who does actually care about Jane’s feelings (to an extent), someone who does care about innocent lives (she wouldn’t shoot the children in the way of her target, and only wounded the cop), someone who deeply loved her sister, and, in the end, someone who is as self-serving as Jane himself. Though most of the fandom is probably still singing “Ding Dong, the Witch is Dead,” I will take a moment to mourn this character who was complex, well-cast (hey, she was cute enough that I still liked her, even when she was zapping people with a stun-gun), and made every episode in which she appeared a topsy-turvy, unpredictable ride.

Randomness: Speaking of unpredictable, whoever cast this ep did a great job. By including at least two “big name” actors in the group of board members, the casting director made it that much harder for the audience to guess who the Red John minion would turn out to be. My money was actually on Emmanuelle Vaugier. She was definitely dialing up the weird, just to throw people off :). Also, Jane’s line about “I only tell you what I’m doing about thirty percent of the time” was priceless. And so true. One of the most interesting things in this whole episode, for me, was the location where Lorelei’s body was found. Was that carnival/funhouse stuff lying around that storage facility? Carnival, as in how Jane grew up? Hmmm…

Final thoughts: Intensity. Unpredictability. High emotion, high stakes, high risk. When our characters are faced with a tough situation, we get to see who’s really trustworthy…and who’s not. Who’s willing to bend the law, and who isn’t. We get to see who puts friendship first, and who puts revenge above all else. In “There Will Be Blood,” we got to see a lot – and I liked what I saw. 🙂

 

 

 

 

Supernatural Review: Episode 8×14 Trial and Error

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Review of Episode 8×14: “Trial and Error”
by castiello

There used to be these two guys. Their names were Sam and Dean. They were brothers, and their childhood was pretty messed up. Their dad, John, was always off hunting werewolves and demons and stuff, so the boys basically raised themselves. As a result of this, they grew very close. So close, in fact, that they came to care more about each other than about themselves. Dean would’ve happily given his life for Sam. Sam would’ve gladly given his life for Dean. Each man wanted the best life and future for his brother, even if it meant the greatest sacrifice of all.

Four nights ago, for the first time in a really friggin’ long time, we got to see those guys.

Welcome back, Sam and Dean.

Dean: “Awwww” moments abounded as Dean set up his new room, complete with weapons on the walls, a Memory Foam mattress (“It remembers me!”) and a faded picture of Mary. If my heart wasn’t already a puddle at that point, the last bit of melting occurred when Dean made some exquisite sandwiches (burgers?) for himself and Sam as a final part of the nesting process. Three cheers for all the fanfic authors who wrote Dean as an artist in the kitchen – your stories are now backed up by canon! It makes sense, too, that Dean knows his way around the stove – growing up, he would’ve been the one cooking dinner for Sam while John was out hunting. ‘Course, back then, he didn’t have much to work with ingredient-wise, so it was nice to see him strutting his culinary stuff in this ep. Sam was so impressed he even took the meal with him!

As touched as I was by Dean’s homemaking, though, his disregard for Kevin’s well-being brought out my grumpy face. 😦 Once again, we have Dean treating a non-family member as expendable. Dean did at least tell Kevin to shower and eat a salad – that was good. But giving Kevin possibly-dangerous, almost-certainly-addictive drugs to mask the pain and keep himself awake? So not cool. If it was Sam running himself into the ground like this, you can bet Dean would be saying, “Slow down, take it easy.” Whether Dean knows it or not, he’s treating Kevin like a pawn, and that sucks.

Considering that Dean’s most notable previous experience with a hellhound was getting ripped to pieces, I thought he’d have more of a fear/anxiety issue with facing these creatures. I almost thought that’s why he wanted Sam to stay behind – because Dean couldn’t bear the idea of Sam getting shredded by one of these things. But then Dean gave the real reason he wanted Sam to stay safe: Dean wants Sam to have a life after the quest. Dean feels that whoever does the challenges is bound to get killed in the process. Now that the role has fallen to Sam, I have only one thing to say to Dean: Keep your brother alive!

Honestly, those scenes between the two of them – the one before killing hellhound and the one afterwards – were just magic. Those were the best performances we’ve seen from Jared and Jensen all season. Our guys are talented enough actors to elevate any material they’re given, even if the writing isn’t fantastic. But when the writers give these guys something really powerful to work with – dialogue and storylines that are epic and emotional and true to the characters – that’s when the show really takes my breath away.

Sam: That little nod he gave after inspecting Dean’s room? Perfect. Just a tiny moment that conveyed so much: approval at Dean’s decorating skills, emotion at seeing the picture of Mary, and a sense of righted wrongs. Sam understands that this is how it should be. Dean should’ve had a room his whole life. Sam’s little nod, to me, said, “’Bout time.”

Nice to know Sam appreciates his brother’s cooking. Having an orgasm over eating a cheeseburger is usually Dean’s thing, so to see Sam love the sandwich that much, to see Sam actually come back for the plate – you know it had to be good. 🙂

Sam, at least, did have some proper concern for Kevin. He advised Kevin to slow down and take better care of himself. I like that Sam objected to the drugs, but I wish he had been more forceful, maybe even found a way to take the pills away – he can see Kevin is headed down a dangerous path, even if Kevin and Dean can’t. In the old days, Sam was always in a rush to find Dad and avenge Mom so that the Winchesters could be done with hunting and move on to normal lives. Of course, by now Sam has realized that every time these guys finish one task, they end up with a whole new crisis to deal with. Sam has learned from his experiences – it’s a marathon, not a sprint. I only hope Kevin takes Sam’s advice before it’s too late…

Just like Dean, Sam has his own reasons for taking on this latest quest: he doesn’t just want Dean to live – he wants them both to live. Sam earned buckets of my love for his speech about how Dean is a smart person with a promising future (“What about your room?”). Neither one of them is expendable, and they both have a chance to live past the final task. I love you, Sam! I just hope the show’s writers agree with you, because killing off a Winchester is not the way I want to see this series end…(Though, from what I just read over at SFO, we now have at least one more season before that end comes!!! 🙂 )

Kevin: Poor baby. He is treating his body like crap right now. I had a hard time even watching him ingest all that coffee – not to mention the nauseating quantities of hotdogs. Blech! Actually, I’m a vegetarian, so double-blech! I was disappointed to see Kevin turn to the pills in the end, rather than taking Sam’s advice on slowing down. You’d think with all of Kevin’s obsession about test-taking and proper study habits, he would know that taking better care of his body would result in a better performance from his brain. He’s already had nosebleeds and “possibly a small stroke,” so who knows what grim fate awaits him if he keeps pushing himself? 😦

Ellie: A tough, sympathetic and beautiful girl. She sparked with Dean like that blonde in the tech tent sparked with Sam. Also, she made a demon deal to save a family member’s life. Seems like a good match for Dean, if there ever was one. 🙂 I hope Sam and Dean do manage to close up hell for good, so this girl won’t end up down there. It was interesting, the question she asked Dean: “What would you do for your mother?” Interesting, because most often, the battle has been about saving Sam, saving Dad, saving Bobby, saving the world…Mary isn’t actually mentioned that often. However, she was front and center in this episode, from her photo at the beginning, to Ellie’s words near the end, and I think that was to remind us that it does all come back to Mary: John and the boys became hunters to avenge Mary, and now Sam and Dean are driven to lock away all demons, in no small part because of the one that took their mother.

SFX: Good special effects on the hellhounds. I like how they were ghostly/vague/see-through-ish. Less is always more – especially on a television budget – and the current show-runner seems to understand that. Last year’s Leviathan effects were a bit too over-the-top for my tastes. The best CGI is stuff that just blends with reality, not stuff that stands up and screams, “COMPUTER-GENERATED IMAGE!!!” Back in Season Two, after I watched “Children Shouldn’t Play with Dead Things,” I read that the tips of the scissors used to stab the zombie – complete with congealed bloody goop hanging off – were computer-generated. I had no idea, because it was so well-integrated. If I don’t know it’s fake, then it’s a great effect.

Random Notes: Loved the holy-fire-scorched specs. That was brilliance. Also: Sam and Dean, in glasses? I think it’s getting hot in here…Also (x2): Does it bother anyone else that these guys are risking their lives based on info obtained from HALF of a tablet? I mean, would you make a casserole for your family if you only had half of the recipe? What if some of the ingredients are left out? What if there’s a necessary step on the missing part of the page, like you have to brown the meat before dumping it in there? This is my main fear right now – Kevin, Sam and Dean are acting like the information is complete, when there is almost certainly something vital left out. Something that would be way more disastrous than some under-cooked ground chuck.

Final Thoughts: A thrilling, emotional ride. Best episode of the season so far. Looking forward to the next one with equal parts eagerness and dread. But not the dread of “Oh, what are the writers going to put me through now?” More like the dread of “Are my guys going to make it out of this thing alive?” I’m invested. And that’s exactly as it should be.