06.00 Rules Of Engagement
06.30 Castle
02.00 The Listener
03.00 Forever Knight
Rules Of Engagement. Season 3, Episode 9. "The Challenge" The guys compete to see who can get sex first.
Hilarious. Great to see an episode which ties all the regulars into one storyline, and one which is very much driven by the premise of the series (single vs. married vs. engaged). Keeping true to it's concept keeps RoE different from all the similar sitcoms that have gone before. The show is funny, it has a vision of what it is (three seasons in) and it's not afraid (like Seinfeld) to write the characters as less-than-nice.
Castle. Episode 9. "Little Girl Lost" Kidnapped little girl.
It's a rule of these romantic dramas. You have to build episodes around your lead's ex-partners. It heightens the conflict, you see. Indeed, I'm sure that if Castle gets a second season (Please!) then one of them will have a story arc where they are dating someone else entirely. Why? Cos show's like to frak with us in this way. And we love it.
This episode introduces us to Beckett's ex-boyfriend, and it's a much more successful effort than the one which introduced Castle's ex-wife. Mainly because he's tied in to the case-of-the-week and there was plenty of opportunity for Castle and the ex to square off. Castle's ex-wife, when she appeared, was kept in the b-plot and away from Beckett. Which, let's face it, is less interesting.
One of the great things about Castle is that, for a show that is mainly about the leads and their romantic tension, it also manages to deliver really good stories ever couple of weeks. This one is a cracker. Nothing very fancy, or complicated, or flashy. Quite a simple story, really. A really good story. Guest star Judy Reyes is superb in her role. And, at the story's climax, they completely leave her to it. The script gives her pages of great material, leaves everyone else standing back in silence, and - boy - did Reyes ever run with the ball. Her performance, and that final scene, make this a serious contender for best ever episode of Castle.
Given the chance, this romantic drama (that I originally assumed was just going to be a vehicle for the fantastic Nathan Fillion) could turn into a superb detective series.
Maybe it already has...
The Listener. Episode 10. "Missing" Toby and Oz try to help a man imprisoned for killing his wife.
Mid-way through the season, The Listener completely hit it's stride and started to deliver superb episodes. This is yet another superb episode. It doesn't feature Lisa Marcos very much but I love this show so much at this stage that I don't even mind. Much.
There are many reason to love this episode.
1. Toby's powers. The show has totally figured out how to use Toby's powers in a way that is totally cool, and totally serves the stories and makes them far more interesting. The guest actors in this episode play their parts with conviction, so we get that rarity in shows of this ilk: bad guys who can tell lies really well. Most liars on TV shows are really crap at telling lies, so much so that the hero doesn't need super powers to tell they are lying. Most of the suspects in this tale were telling lies and none of the actors played their part as if they were lying. This made Toby's powers all the more cool and interesting.
I also love the way the show has decided to manifest his powers: visions that might be memory or fantasy or intent or random nonsense. And it's up to Toby to interpret. Wonderful. Early episodes didn't make this clear. But it's the way it works now, and I love it.
2. Oz. Without making it a stated aim of the script, the show has found a way to show us how Toby's friends 'use' him and his power. He wanted to help Marks last week, so it was okay. But Oz was totally forcing him into using his power this week, and it was great to see how their friendship rides the rough waters of these moments without any self-conscious moments of discussion. Kinda like a real friendship. The Toby-Oz friendship has always been one of my favourite elements of the series, and it continues to be.
3. The story. It's a cracker of a tale from start to finish. Oz's parents are suffering the effects of the current financial crisis and Oz wants to use Toby to make some money fast. Their attempts to win money from cheating at poker were both funny and interesting and made perfect sense. A great answer to the question of why he doesn't use his power to make himself rich.
4. The twist. I love stories with a twist, and I love shows that opt to end their episodes on a downbeat note. The resolution of this episode was superb. Stephen McHattie is one of my favourite performers and he was a perfect choice for this role. All his scenes were great, but that last one was chilling. Craig Olejnik really sold the shock, too. Great work all round. Maybe the best 'moment' so far in the whole series.
5. Mylene Robic/Olivia. She didn't have as much screentime in this episode, as in the previous two, but I really love her and Toby as a couple. It's about time they brought her into the loop, to, with regard to his powers. Bringing Oz and Marks in on the secret opened the stories up in a major way and it would be cool if they tried to write a TV relationship where one of the characters was a mind reader. (I bet he still gets everything wrong!)
Forever Knight. Episode 11. "Hunters" Schanke goes into hiding when someone targets him for death.
Why is Forever Knight such a cool show? This episode provides many of the answers.
1. John Kapelos as Schanke. This man rules!! Kapelos was sometimes asked to play his role as broad comedy (which he did with consummate ease) but, left to his own devices, he plays Schanke as if this was an episode of Homicide: Life On The Street. In other words, he played it totally real. Yet, Schanke is very cool. Obnoxious and rude and a little bit stupid, but - let's face it - the guy is cool. And this is a Schanke-centric episode. Placing him in The Raven is a stroke of genius. The comedy is perfect and the conversation with Janette (about Nick's past) is gripping.
2. The Night Shooting. Since Nick is a vampire, he works the night shift and the show is filmed/set at night. Toronto looks awesome at night (I've been there and it looks awesome at any time, to be honest) and it has never looked better than in Forever Knight. If I could work the nightshift anywhere (as a cop) I would ride along with Nick and Schanke in Toronto. This episode looks great. I love the pre-credits scene (as the guys walk the night streets) and anything and everything that happens outdoors at night. Which is a lot of stuff on this show. Superboy was cool in a similar way. The last two seasons were filmed at night (in Florida) and it added something to the show.
3. Nick at the piano. Many episodes were 'padded out' with wonderful character moments for Nick, as he sat as his piano and pondered his lot in life. I say 'padded out' because I think these scenes were filmed so they could be edited out in certain markets (to allow for more ads, sigh) without harming the actual plot of the episode (as if they cared about that kind of thing). However these scenes are not padding in the classic sense. They are genuine character moments. This episode has one. Nick sits at the piano, plays with the flame of a candle and - later - drives around the city at night with some cool music playing on the soundtrack. Forever Knight has awesome music. Many songs were specially written for the series, and the actual score of the show is distinctive and wonderful, too.
4. The Flashbacks. Forever Knight was one of three shows to hit the air at the same time, which had heroes who were special in some way, and whose adventures were punctuated by flashbacks to their earlier lives. Highlander and Kung Fu: The Legend Continues were the other two. The Highlander flashbacks were lavish affairs which underscored the main plot or, in some cases, told a different story. On Kung Fu: The Legend Continues we were treated to little moments that added depth and meaning to the life of Caine. And on Forever Knight we tended to get bleak, sad views of past deeds which were used to explain the sadness that followed Nick Knight wherever he went. This one is a doozy. It shows Nick being hunted and - in a moment of frenzy - turning on, and taking the lives of his hunters. In a clever touch, we see Janette telling Schanke a toned-down version of the same event and the script clever uses the incident to provoke a discussion between the characters and, indeed, provoke Schanke into action.
It's also very cool. Geraint Wyn Davies knows exactly how to sell the pain that Nick feels without every making it self-conscious or false. Something it would have become on a lesser show.
The Nick/Natalie relationship is another example of why FK is cooler than Angel, Blood Ties or Moonlight, but since it's not featured heavily here, I'll leave my views on it until another time.
Bottom line: Forever Knight rocks!
Highlight? The Listener (the twist at the very end is a killer)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago
Tue, May 5, 09 - Rules Of Engagement, Castle, Listener, Forever Knight
