Posted Nov 24th 2009 2:31PM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Lie to Me
(
S02E08)
"You believe in Santa Claus?" - Lightman
Ho Ho Ho... you're going to Afghanistan. Not exactly a Christmas present to be happy about. Having said that, Cal must surely be happy about what he accomplished in last night's episode of
Lie to Me.
Sent to a US Marines outpost in the middle of the desert near Kabul, Cal was tasked with uncovering the truth about a deep-cover US operative who got left for dead and had to join to Taliban to survive. Cal was able to get plenty of info from his subject about two missing Marines but we ended up learning far more about Dr. Lightman as a result of his methods.
Continue reading Review: Lie to Me - Secret Santa
Posted Nov 24th 2009 1:30PM by Jane Boursaw
Filed under: OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, Castle
(S02E10) ""A wife and a fiance catfight ... please can we stop for popcorn on the way?" - Castle
Molly C. Quinn is such a cutie. I loved the storyline this week where she volunteers to categorize evidence, and in doing so, uses her skills to help return someone's precious "brag book" to them. She takes after her dad in the "big heart" department.
Castle is good about that. They could have made Richard Castle as a roguish playboy who chases women and loves a good time, and while he's got some of that in him (see above quote), he's also a dedicated family man. The writers are good about the characters that way. Beckett is a hard-nosed detective, but she's also good with people, excelling at giving them bad news in such a way as to soften the blow.
Continue reading Review: Castle - One Man's Treasure
Posted Nov 24th 2009 9:29AM by Kona Gallagher
Filed under: Battlestar Galactica, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free, The Big Bang Theory
(S03E09) As soon as I read the episode info and saw that Kripke was going to be making an appearance, I lost all hope of this episode coming anywhere close to matching the
brilliance of last week's. I was not wrong. I don't like Kripke. I don't find a speech impediment to be funny, and with him, it's completely extraneous. Sheldon could just have an enemy (I don't doubt he had many, in fact). You don't need to give the character this extra identifying mark.
So not only was I dismayed by Kripke's appearance, his practical joke was just mean-spirited and again, not something that I found funny. I don't like watching people getting humiliated. Sheldon dressed up for a
radio interview. That's adorable, and then to not only be embarrassed for absolutely no reason in front of a national audience, but to have his friends laughing at him as well, just made me sad. Luckily, Wolowitz's uh, love triangle with Bernadette and
Katee Sackhoff saved the episode for me.
Continue reading Review: The Big Bang Theory - The Vengence Formulation
Posted Nov 24th 2009 8:03AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, House, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(
S06E09)
"There's no point in putting a band together if we're not going to play any gigs." - House
I'm torn over the best way to tackle this review of "Ignorance is Bliss." I have far more bad things to say about the episode than I do good things, yet I loved it. The outcome I (and presumably most other fans) want to see (House and Cuddy together) is hopefully going to be achieved. This just isn't my ideal path to get there.
Continue reading Review: House - Ignorance is Bliss
Posted Nov 24th 2009 4:18AM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Heroes, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E11) I am thankful that we are finally getting to the meat of this volume. I am thankful that we are inching closer to the inevitable conclusion of this battle between Sylar and Nathan over who will retain control of the body. And I am thankful that Angela Petrelli, the always incomparable Cristine Rose, was back this week.
Also making a return appearance for the Bennett family Thanksgiving dinner was Sandra, along with her new beau Doug. And, of course, Mr. Muggles. It's sweet that Muggs fell in love with Doug's dog, but that doesn't excuse Sandra for dating such a total tool. It's a little awkward to think of going to your ex's holiday, but it's not unheard of. Particularly since she probably already knew Claire was going to be there.
Not to be outdone, Samuel had a Thanksgiving dinner of his own back at the Carnival, but Hiro certainly wasn't thankful to be there.
Continue reading Review: Heroes - Thanksgiving
Posted Nov 24th 2009 12:52AM by Allison Waldman
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, OpEd, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S07E09) How far are the writers going to take the Charlie and Chelsea relationship? Do you think they're actually going to get married? I ask because tonight's show was a glimpse of what married Charlie might be like. Funny, yes, but is a domesticated Charlie really what I want to watch? Gin rummy and snoring? Charlie being sensitive and in touch with a woman's feelings? Where has my Charlie gone?
Alan, fortunately, is in exactly the same spot where he's always been. The crapper. Remember that Emmy that Jon Cryer won for
Two and a Half Men in September? He may have earned a bookend with this season's work. More on his hair care products and dating services after the jump.
Continue reading Review: Two and a Half Men - Captain Terry's Spray-On Hair
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 11:19PM by Joel Keller
Filed under: How I Met Your Mother, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S05E09) Let me start off by stating that any
HIMYM episode involving the famous slap bet between Marshall and Barney is going to be funny. Just the act of Jason Segel's exaggerated slapping and Neil Patrick Harris' equally exaggerated pratfall in reaction is enough to get me rolling. I just wish the slaps weren't telegraphed so much in advance.
You have to remember that tonight is a sequel to
the original Slapsgiving from two years ago. As sequels go, it's not bad; not as good as the original but satisfying nevertheless. But you knew at some point, Marshall was going to say "That's four!" and Barney was going to rub his face. So we have to examine the journey to get there. That journey started off well, but got a little predictable. Still didn't make the slap itself any less funny.
Continue reading Review: How I Met Your Mother - Slapsgiving 2: Revenge of the Slap
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 4:01PM by Danny Gallagher
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S03E09) "I had a plan, I did, but it just didn't work out the way I thought it would."/"What? You thought he'd (Hank) do a good job of being in charge?" - Karen to Becca
Remember watching
Friends and feeling that great sense of heavy letdown when you realized that week's diversion of reality would be a "Joey-heavy episode"?
That describes this week's
Californication to a tee, except the great sense of heavy letdown doesn't quite sit on top of your soul with the girth and grim sadism of an evil sumo wrestler.
Continue reading Review: Californication - Mr. Bad Example
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 2:14PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Animation, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
The "All Seth, All the Time" block of animation on FOX is getting stronger every week. I think this may have been the most wholly satisfying episode of
The Cleveland Show we've had yet. The show finally knows what it is, the characters are settled in and established, and it even knows where it's going to derive its humor.
There's a sweetness to
The Cleveland Show that is more reminiscent of
King of the Hill than either of MacFarlane's established shows, and I'm glad to see it. My biggest fear was that Cleveland's star vehicle would be nothing more than
Family Guy-lite, but after a very rough start, I'm able to see and appreciate it for what it is.
Family Guy may have found their replacement for Cleveland in this week's episode. I hope the boys do find a new "fourth," and I don't think I'd mind if it's the guy they find themselves hanging out with this week. On
American Dad, Stan discovers rock music, and he'll do anything to hang out with his new favorite band: My Morning Jacket.
Continue reading Sundays with Seth: Auntie Momma, Jerome and My Morning Jacket
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 1:46PM by Annie Wu
Filed under: Other Comedy Shows, Animation, Adult Swim, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E06) This episode was a rare star-studded treat for
Venture Bros. Really honing in on the idea of adult aftermath in the lives of boy adventurer types, Jackson Publick introduced a robot boy, boy detective brothers (Seth Green and John Hodgman), former Wonder Boy (Patton Oswalt) and the return of Action Johnny (Brendon Small). Never before have so many guest voices (okay, four) been crammed into an installment, bringing the entire audience to an immediate nerdgasm.
Continue reading Review: The Venture Bros. - Self-Medication
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 1:15PM by Jason Hughes
Filed under: The Simpsons, Animation, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S21E06) This was a pretty well-structured episode, in that it might even give Bart some hope and direction for his own life. Who knew that Skinner and Willie were once cool and beloved, and that Willie was the swim teacher for Springfield Elementary? Okay, as most of you know I've been out of touch with
The Simpsons for years prior to this anniversary season, so if this was already revealed, it's new to me.
The bulk of the episode dealt with Bart learning that there was a prankster before him, and one who was even his superior. So of course, Bart seeks out this 19-year old malcontent to learn from the master and come back stronger and better than ever. Too bad, as Lisa is so quick to point out, they're both still losers.
Continue reading Review: The Simpsons - Pranks and Greens
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 8:38AM by Jonathan Toomey
Filed under: OpEd, Curb Your Enthusiasm, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(
S07E10) "It's the
Seinfeld reunion! That's a big deal!" - Cheryl
Yes, it
is a big deal. A little over eleven years after we saw Jerry, Elaine, Kramer, and George behind bars, the reunion we've all been waiting for has finally arrived. I'm not sure if this even counts as a category to classify TV shows, but last night's
Curb Your Enthusiasm season finale was easily the best "show within a show" episode I've ever seen... of
any show.
Jane was kind enough to step in for me and write up
last week's penultimate ep and I actually waited until last night to see that one as well -- I watched them back to back. I was struck by how well it all flowed together; how much it actually felt like we were watching a real episode of
Seinfeld, even during the table read. However, seeing it play out, scene by scene, in the finale? Talk about nostalgia.
Continue reading Review: Curb Your Enthusiasm - Seinfeld (season finale)
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 4:59AM by Danny Gallagher
Filed under: Dexter, Episode Reviews, Reality-Free
(S04E09) "Everything is exactly the way it should be. Perfect." - Rita Morgan
The season is almost over and that means things are bound to ramp up as Dexter moves in closer to kill the Trinity Killer. But this week, we get treated to a special Thanksgiving episode. Think of it as a sordid cross between the "Thanksgiving Day" episode from
Father Knows Best mixed with the director's cut of any episode of
Twin Peaks.
After explaining his identity, background and own "Dark Passenger," this week's episode dove head first into his family who aren't as Norman Rockwell as Arthur Mitchell might want Dexter and the rest of the world to believe. It turns out they are probably the most interesting aspect of Mitchell's twisted life and could turn out to be a huge asset to bringing the man down, now that he no longer has them in his upper hand.
Continue reading Review: Dexter - Hungry Man
Posted Nov 23rd 2009 1:25AM by Jackie Schnoop
Filed under: OpEd, The Amazing Race, Episode Reviews
(S15E10) I mentioned last week that the remaining teams on
The Amazing Race are really feeling the pressure as they're getting closer to the win. Well, there were no fisticuffs, no elbowing, but there was an underhanded incident ... or two or three.
Unlike
Survivor, this show doesn't depend on sneakiness or scheming. In the end, it's how well they run the race around the world, how well they read the clues, and how well they complete the tasks. While getting along with the other teams is always a good thing, there's no popularity vote at the finish line. But they are competing. Sometimes some sneakiness just sneaks on in.
Continue reading Review: The Amazing Race - We're Not Working With Anybody, Ever, Anymore!
Posted Nov 22nd 2009 12:38PM by Annie Wu
Filed under: OpEd, Saturday Night Live, Episode Reviews
(S35E07) I imagine it played out like this: Joseph Gordon-Levitt was at home last week, trying to mentally prepare for his first go as
Saturday Night Live host by watching
January Jones. Her performance turned out to be wooden and incredibly low energy and, consequently, the laughs were minimal. This struck fear into Mr. Gordon-Levitt's heart, and, terrified, he dropped the pint of Phish Food that he was eating in my imagination. "I won't let this happen to me," I bet he said. "I'm going to eat two fistfuls of Pixi Stix at 11:25 p.m. Saturday night and have someone inject me with a near lethal dose of adrenaline. I'll also wear a lot of vests."
And that's how Joseph Gordon-Levitt managed to exhaust a seated audience through sheer enthusiasm and volume alone. Maybe.
Continue reading Review: Saturday Night Live - Joseph Gordon-Levitt/Dave Matthews Band
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