Wonder Woman 18 A weak start gives way to what is actually a...

Wonder Woman 18

A weak start gives way to what is actually a good story with an interesting villain.

• The fourth episode produced for the new season and definitely the best so far. It has problems, yes, but they are minor compared to the flaws of the first three episodes. And the second half is great!
• The villain’s not really a villain, just a man with what he believes is a justifiable grievance. He’s also got telekinetic powers, making him into a truly formidable opponent for Wonder Woman.
  
• As the show went on, it tended to do this a lot: creating interesting one-episode characters who could easily feature in more episodes, or even their own spin-off series.
  
• So, while the villain reminds one of the great days ahead, the opening scenes are a reminder that we are still stuck in the early part of the CBS episodes: Joe is still a character, Diana is frequently off-screen and Steve takes center-stage a lot.
  
• The middle-of-the-night briefing that opens the story is bad. Stiff and boring. It’s the worst possible way to open an episode of an action-adventure superhero show.
  
• The conclusion, however, is magnificent. Not just for the tense showdown between WW and the villain but also for the moment when our heroine relinquishes her powers to meet him head on. Truly heroic.
• In this sequence, as well as all others, Lynda Carter is fantastic.
  

9/10

The four Wonder Woman transformations from episode 17.

The four Wonder Woman transformations from episode 17.

Wonder Woman 17

The Wonder Woman tv series didn’t have on-screen titles...

The Wonder Woman tv series didn’t have on-screen titles for every episode. But I fixed that! :) Just for the purposes of making these wallpapers.

Wonder Woman 16

Mel Ferrer. A mess that meanders from incident to incident without discernible story and ends with WW murdering a clone of Hitler!?!
This is the first episode after the revamp/relaunch and it’s very much about the team of Steve and Diana out in the field together for the duration. This structure seems strange to someone more used to the solo-Diana episodes that populated the vast majority season 2 and 3. Having a partner takes away some of Diana’s power, and it leads to very silly scenes where Steve is with WW but can’t seem to spot that Diana has just gone away for some reason.
The writing of this episode is poor. It opens with our duo being given a mission, but they never have to do very much because as soon as they arrive at their destination the bad guys attack them and kidnap her, which easily gets the story up and running.
There’s a odd scene in the middle that goes on for too long and features conversations with the sons of two men from WWII. They never appear again after this oddball scene. A time filler, perhaps?
The clone of Hitler makes his appearance in a genuinely creepy scene. But, after that, he is more amusing than terrifying and Wonder Woman’s decision to reverse the cloning procedure (huh?!) seems like an especially bloodthirsty decision. Why not just imprison the clone?
Despite the crap script, the cast are good. But, oddly, we don’t actually see a lot of Lynda Carter in this episode, and WW accomplishes very little.

4/10

Wonder Woman

1. The New Original Wonder Woman
2. Fausta: The Nazi Wonder Woman
3. Wonder Woman Meets Baroness Von Gunther
4. Beauty On Parade
5. The Feminum Mystique, Part One
6. The Feminum Mystique, Part Two
7. Last Of The $2 Bills
8. The Pluto File
9. Wonder Woman vs Gargantua!
10. Formula 407
11. Judgement From Outer Space, Part One
12. Judgement From Outer Space, Part Two
13. The Bushwackers
14. Wonder Woman In Hollywood
15. The Return Of Wonder Woman
16. Anschluss ‘77
17. The Bermuda Triangle Crisis
18. The Man Who Could Move The World
19. Knockout
20. The Pied Piper
21. The Queen And The Thief
22. I Do, I Do
23. The Man Who Made Volcanoes
24. Mind Stealers From Outer Space, Part One
25. Mind Stealers From Outer Space, Part Two
26. The Deadly Toys
27. Light-Fingered Lady
28. Screaming Javelin
29. I.R.A.C is Missing
30. Diana’s Disappearing Act
31. Death In Disguise
32. Seance Of Terror
33. Flight To Oblivion
34. The Girl From Islandia
35. The Man Who Wouldn’t Tell
36. The Murderous Missile
37. The Deadly Sting
38. The Fine Art Of Crime
39. Formicida
40. Hot Wheels
41. My Teenage Idol Is Missing
42. Disco Devil
43. Time Bomb
44. Skateboard Wiz
45. The Deadly Dolphin
46. Stolen Faces
47. Gault’s Brain
48. Going, Going, Gone
49. Pot Of Gold
50. Spaced Out
51. The Starships Are Coming
52. Amazon Hot Wax
53. Phantom Of The Roller Coaster, Part One
54. Phantom Of The Roller Coaster, Part Two
55. The Richest Man In The World
56. A Date With Doomsday
57. The Girl With A Gift For Disaster
58. The Boy Who Knew Her Secret, Part One
59. The Boy Who Knew Her Secret, Part Two
60. The Man Who Could Not Die

Wonder Woman 15

Jessica Walter, Fritz Weaver.

• Slow-moving movie that updated/revamped the series in 1977, when it moved to CBS.


• Weak story, which gets progressively sillier as it goes on (adding concepts like androids and doppelgangers at a late stage as minor plot points).


• Guest stars are excellent.

6/10

Wonder Woman. Episode 10. "Formula 407"

Wonder Woman. Episode 10. "Formula 407" Argentina.

My favourite production block from the Wonder Woman tv series is the final 24 episodes, where the show had found it's groove, so to speak, as a serious fantasy spy/action show. The first 14 episodes have always been my least favourite block. Here: the show was set in World War II and had a camp air about it - everyone seemed to be overplaying it, in a tongue-in-cheek manner, which I don't enjoy.

Episode 10 is a bit of a treat, then, because it doesn't have any camp elements and - instead - has lot of genuine humour, a solid story with good characters and visible teamwork between the leads.

On mission to Argentina Diana Prince must deal with the unwanted advances of a South American Lothario. And very funny it is, too. It's the first time Lynda Carter was given something to do that is actually capable of making the viewer laugh out loud and she handles it perfectly.  Every time.

The story concerns our heroes going up against a Nazi team for possession of a secret formula. The script spends a lot if time explaining the set-up to the adventure in a manner that makes perfect sense and is a refreshing change from earlier episodes in the run.

One of the things I love about those final episodes of the series are the large number of scenes devoted to guest characters. Scenes with advance the story somewhat, and give depth and character arcs to the participants in the tale. It's largely missing from the first year of the show. Except here. Formula 407 actually crafts it's characters and gives them their own little stories. It adds enormously to the viewing pleasure.  For example, when a secondary character is betrayed by the Nazi leader the script devotes time to her feelings on the matter.  And allows other characters to comment on it.  Wonder Woman really shines here, showing honest-to-goodness compassion.

Best of all is the teamwork between Wonder Woman and Steve. They spend the back-half of the episode working together and you really believe in theme as a team. Waggoner and Carter have an easy-going chemistry and he raises several laughs from his interaction with the super-heroine. It's also nice to see Steve Trevor dispatching a baddie totally unaided, in the beach scene where WW juggles bombs then casually stands by while Major Trevor wrestles with the Nazi ringleader for possession of a gun.  In this they seem like a team.

Given the fact that it's from a phase of the show that I don't much care for, I must admit that I really loved this episode.

7/10

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Wed, Feb 04, 09 - Worst Week, The Office, Wonder Woman

06.30 Worst Week
07.00 The Office
08.00 Wonder Woman

Worst Week. Episode 14. "The Sex" Mel's young nephew takes a picture of the couple during an intimate moment. And they have to stop it being seen during a show-and-tell at his school.

Average episode. Sam - this time out - doesn't really do much to create the chaos, this is just an example of the incredible bad luck that he and Mel have on a regular basis. There are a few laughs here and there and - as usual - one of the things I enjoy most about this show is discovering how funny Erinn Hayes can be. I also love seeing the way Mel and Sam are portrayed as a couple.

The Office. Season 5, Episode 13. "Stress Relief" The one with the fire drill, Stanley's heart attack, and the bootleg movie starring Jack Black.

I'm in the minority here. This episode got a lot of praise, but it left me cold. The fire drill at the start was funny, and the bootleg movie with Jack Black and Cloris Leachman was hysterical but everything else was dull.

I particularly hated the Jim and Pam storyline, which was predictable. From the moment it started, I was able to guess - word for word - how it might end. And I was right. If - for the sake of argument - we assume that Pam's revelation at the end had 25 words in it, I can claim that I had 20 of them in my head for the duration of the episode and wasn't a bit impressed when they writers went that route with the storyline. I could forgive this, if they had made me laugh somewhere along the way. But, the didn't...



Wonder Woman. Episode 2. "Fausta: The Nazi Wonder Woman" A Nazi operative poses as Wonder Woman and her team is able to capture the real Amazon and bring her back to Germany.

The tone is different and the episode is much better than the pilot. Except for a few awful scenes with General Blankenship there seems to be no attempt to camp it up and play it for laughs. Everyone seems to be playing it straight and - since the script is strong - this is a very enjoyable episode.

Lynda Day George is wonderful as the bad-guy-of-the-week, and she leads a very strong guest cast. Lynda Carter has aged a little bit since the pilot was filmed and looks less 'girlish' and more like a woman. It suits her. And the role. She's more than just 'beautiful' or 'sexy'. She is, to be quite honest, somewhat magnicient when she strides around as Wonder Woman. Carter brings a real majesty to the role and - in episodes like this - it's easy to see why she is still considered, by many, to be the best comic book superhero ever brought to television.



It's more than just a strong story, too. At the climax of the episode the battle between WW and her nemesis is a battle of reason, more than a battle of violence. It has been well established, earlier in the story, that those working with Fausta have no real respect for her. Even though her instincts are proving to be right, every step of the way. In the end, when they have turned on her, Diana is able to appeal to her as a woman and convince her that she has no place in this 'man's war'. While part of me does not like the anti-male sentiment, I must admit that this is a very fresh story idea and it is very enjoyable.

Highlight? Wonder Woman (fresh story idea)
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Sun, Jun 8th, 2008 - Wonder Woman, Supernatural, Greg The Bunny, Kyle XY

06:30    Wonder Woman
08:30    Supernatural
11:00    Greg The Bunny
12:00    Kyle XY

Wonder Woman.  Episode 1.  "The New Original Wonder Woman"  Awful.  I don't like the first 21 episodes of Wonder Woman.  In fact, there are some I've never watched even though I have them all on tape.  And, being a completist, I went ahead and bought the whole series on DVD.  Crazy, isn't it?

I don't like the tone of the pilot.  Or, to be more correct, the tone that the pilot attempts to have.  For, in my eyes, it just doesn't work.  The cast are good (except for Cloris Leachman, who inexplicably sucks) but the material just isn't there to make it work.  Even so Lynda Carter, Red Buttons and Lyle Waggoner manage to be watchable.  It says a lot for the script that it manages to take all the fun out of watching people like Kenneth Mars and Henry Gibson.  I mean, seriously, how can you suck the fun out of watching Henry Gibson??!

Anyway, the episode tells the story of Steve Trevor crashing on Paradise Island, being found by the Amazons there and being taken back to the United States by Wonder Woman, who sticks around to fight the Nazi threat.

Influenced by the 60s Batman series (possibly the worst television series of all time, next to Firefly) the whole thing is trying to make fun of the story it is telling.  I don't much like the idea of making fun of Wonder Woman, but I positively hate the fact that they can't do it right and can't make me laugh or smile at any point.

What a mess.

Supernatural.  Season 2, Episode 1.  "In My Time of Dying" picks up seconds after the events of the season finale.  And, since it brings the multi-episode story of the gun to a conclusion, it would have worked just fine as a season-ender itself.  It's another superb episode.  Hovering near death, Dean is a spirit in this one.  Wandering the halls of a hospital while his brother and father watch on.  He finds he is not alone however: there's another spirit trapped, too.  And, being Supernatural, it's a pretty girl in need of help.

Except, of course, that's not what is going on, at all!  And, boy, was I ever surprised by the twist!  Jensen Ackles does some of his best ever work in this one, as Dean has to come to terms with his fate.  As always on this show, the action is driven by the characters.

The twist in the father's storyline took me by surprise, also.  In hindsight, it makes perfect sense.  And it's really the only logical way for things to end.  Yet, as I watched it, I was totally sucked it.  And, in the final scenes, I was glued to the screen almost crying out "No!" as I waited for the dreadful events to unfold.

Heartbreaking, exceptional storytelling.

Greg The Bunny.  Episode 3.  "Dottie Heat"  It may have a plot from the Big Book Of Standard Sitcom Plots but this one is a winner from start to finish.  Unlike the previous episode which seemed to hope we'd be amused because, you know, half the cast are puppets and that should be enough, this one is full of great one-liners and lots of laughs.

Both Jimmy and Greg have romance on their minds at the start of the story and, while Jimmy has no chance with woman of his dreams, Greg winds up (by accident) having a date with the object of his desire: Dottie.  Their date is hilarious and so is the aftermath (where Greg lies to the guys at work about having had sex with Dottie).  Sure, it's a bit lame that he has to learn a lesson about friendship and respect and all that jazz, but - every step of the way - the laughs flow freely.  Particularly when Warren is on-screen.  His running gag of Christmas innuendo is particular funny.

Great fun.

Kyle XY.  Season 2, Episode 7.  "Free To Be You and Me" is more like a teen-soap than any other episode has been.  But, you know what, all that honest-to-goodness teenage-love is good for the soul.  Kyle and Amanda spend a heck of a long time gazing lovingly into one another's eyes in this episode and, I swear, it left me with a big ol' grin on my face.  It's just so darn sweet.

This was also the episode where Kyle learned to dance and that was great, too.  Equal parts sweet and funny.  Plus, after seven episodes of teasing us, the show brought two ongoing plots to conclusion: Kyle met Jessi for the first time, and Kyle finally started telling Declan the truth.  Their reconciliation was a great scene.  I love the way Declan bypassed all the nonsense and jumped right to showing Kyle the threatening photos he'd received.

Highlight?  Supernatural