05.30 My Boys
06.00 In Plain Sight
07.00 Burn Notice
08.00 Party Down
My Boys. Season 3, Episode 4. "Decathlon: Part Deux" The gang competes in a board game decathlon, while Stephanie wants to write about the guys for a Cosmo article and PJ tries to cope with criticism from Bobby.
A so-so episode. Many, many scenes are devoted to watching the gang goof off. Fans will find this amusing. New viewers? Not so much.
The show is doing a great job, I feel, of writing PJ and Bobby as a couple. Adjusting to one another as partners, instead of friends. By keeping these moments are b-plot stuff in the episodes it seems more natural somehow.
I liked the Stephanie storyline. The scene with Andy at home was hilarious and the ending (where she had something good to say about men) was unexpected and clever.
So, a so-so episode. With the season being so short, I kinda feel like this was a waste of an episode somehow.
In Plain Sight. Season 2, Episode 3. "A Stand-Up Triple" Mary tries to help a teenage boy who - like her - is dealing with a bad mother. Jinx, meanwhile, sends Brandi to an AA to pretend to be her, to help her avoid jailtime.
Another great episode. In Plain Sight seems to have perfected the art of "The Moment" this season. Last week, everything in the episode build towards one cool moment in the courtroom when the camera revealed the sticker on the microphone and we realised how Mary was going to get the guy to talk, and we realised how clever and wonderful she can be when she chooses. This week, the whole dilemma facing Mary is whether to break up the family of her witness. The woman in question is selfish and oblivious to the harm she is doing to her kids, so Mary wants to take them away. It's up to the eldest kid to decide what to do. And, in the last minute of the episode, when he and Mary are having yet another argument about his situation and his decision to stay the camera goes for a close up and he points out that his situation is better than hers because he has Mary to talk to...
And it works.
It packs exactly the sort of punch the writers wanted it to, and it makes a great ending to the story. Downbeat, yes, but great.
Lots of praise here for Lost's likable Cynthia Watros who is cast against type as a mean, selfish mother and does a fantastic charm. Because Watros is so likable and charming, we tend to almost believe all the lies that she tells Mary. Clever casting, great actress.
Finally, I loved the Brandi subplot. It was wonderful. Funny and heartbreaking in equal measure. I really hope the show allows her to make amends with the Joshua Malina character. I want to see him in the show again.
Burn Notice. Season 2, Episode 16. "Lesser Evil" Michael teams with Victor and goes after Carla. Who comes after them, with all guns blazing.
A full hour of action. Car chases, explosions, gun battles, etc. Recurring bad guy Victor is given a backstory/origin and Michael opts to trust him, just as Carla's people arrive and chase them all over Miami.
Action highlights? The hand-to-hand combat between Michael and Victor was cool, the escape from the parking garage was clever and exciting, the street of exploding cars was stunning (I'm so in love with Fiona right now) and the shoot-out at the boat was a fitting conclusion.
But, all told, this was an action-packed episode from start to finish. Amid the action we got many superb character-driven moments for Michael, Sam and Michael's mother. Even Victor got his character fleshed out in this, his final episode.
Carla met her demise in this episode. It was, I felt, a bit too low-key. It was satisfying to see her brought down by a sniper shot from Fiona (I'm so in love with Fiona right now) but it was over a bit too soon. Shouldn't we get to see Carla suffer a bit, register her defeat for a while before the kill shot?
Anyway, that's a minor complaint. Loved the episode. Great season finale.
Party Down. Episode 2. "California College Conservatives Union Caucus" Ron burns the American Flag outside a political dinner.
Much better than Episode 1. There are more laughs to be had and Ken Marino is less of a Steve Carell-lite and more like himself. The script didn't push the idea of him being a bad boss, this time out, and was more about his fawning nature. Marino is very funny. This is not his best role, but he's certainly making me like watching the character.
With Alona Tal and Jason Dohring in the guest cast, this is another episode full of Veronica Mars goodness.
Bottom line, however, is that this is a very funny episode. The Ryan Hansen gay joke scene is worth watching over and over, as is the Jane Lynch outburst. "Since when is Toronto not part of the United States?!!"
Highlight? Burn Notice (full hour of action)
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Fri, May 8, 09 - My Boys, In Plain Sight, Burn Notice, Party Down
