Friends, Community, FlashForward, Defying Gravity, The Rockford Files

Friday, December 4th, 2009

04.30 Friends
05.00 Community
05.30 FlashForward
06.30 Defying Gravity
07.30 The Rockford Files

Friends. Episode 4. "The One With George Stephanopoulos" The girls sit in, the guys go out.

A bit forced. The six friends are divided up into obvious gender-based groups, with predictable results. Not particularly funny or memorable, although it's always great to see Mary Pat Gleason doing her thing.

Community. Episode 11. "The Politics of Human Sexuality" Annie freaks out over a SexEd demonstration, while Jeff tries to find a date - really fast.

Jeff's evolution continues. Quite a smart script, this one. Sharon Lawrence is underused, but great nonetheless.

FlashForward. Episode 10. "A561984" Hong Kong.

Quite a lot of absurd in this one. It's a frustrating experience for the viewer, as after each and every scene you are inclined to ask: "But, why would... [fill in the blank]".

Zoey reveals, for the first time, that she did not see Demetri in her flashforward, despite having indicated clearly that she did see him up to this point. She also reveals details from her FF that make no great sense, in light of her behaviour in earlier episodes. I mean, it was pretty obvious she was at a funeral, so why would she not realise this until now?

Lloyd and Simon announce to the world that their experiment caused the blackout. But Simon doesn't really think they are responsible and - up to now - we've been led to believe that Lloyd is a bit of an outcast from his group, so why would they take his lead on this and go public?

Simon joins the FBI investigation and is given access to secret information. Why would they trust him?

Mark and Demetri (very easily) find Demetri's mystery woman, and she tells them more about Demetri's murder. It's not that dramatic, so why would she bother to withhold it until now? And why would Mark try and kidnap her at gunpoint? What was he hoping to achieve?

It's a very stupid show.

Defying Gravity. Episode 10. "Deja Vu" Paula can't fly, Jen can't see Beta, Donner can't get anyone to listen to his worries.

Another superb episode. Jen's inability to see Beta is particularly interesting, as is Paula's abrupt about turn with regard to what she thinks Beta is.

Meanwhile, back on earth, a surprise car accident in the closing seconds left this particular viewer totally confused about what is going on.

Truly, this is a show on the same level as Lost.

The Rockford Files. Episode 6. "Tall Woman in Red Wagon" On the trail of a missing woman. And some missing money, of course.

I love the fantasy of Hollywood, the idea that someone looks like Sian Barbara Allen can a 'plain jane' character who idolises a better-looking woman, like the missing woman. It's absurd, but it's part of the fantasy. And it's a testament to the skill of these storytellers when we can believe it, even when Ms. Allen's smile (in the closing scene) is radiant enough to melt an iceberg.

But, anyway...

None of these musing have anything to do with this particular episode of The Rockford Files. And it's another good one. Jim works closely with his client in this one, and they have a great bickering chemistry.

The end is one of those where they is no real resolution: Jim tells one person where he thinks the money is, then he tells a different person a different story and - finally - when alone he admits that he has no clue where they money is. Wonderful.

Highlight? Defying Gravity (superb)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago

Community, The Vampire Diaries, Defying Gravity, FlashForward

Friday, November 20th, 2009

05.30 Community
08.00 The Vampire Diaries
09.00 Defying Gravity
10.00 FlashForward

Community. Episode 10. "Environmental Science" Jeff buddies up with Chang and his classmates are stuck with lots of extra work.

Sometimes the warm and fuzzy endings on Community don't quite work, but this one holds together pretty well. Jeff's friends think that Jeff has sold them out to get an easy life for himself at college. But, that's not the case and everybody makes up at the end.

The Vampire Diaries. Episode 10. "The Turning Point"

I'm torn between this and The Good Wife as the Best New Show This Season. Both are superb.

In it's first ten episodes, TVD has done a fantastic job of creating a world around these characters. It's much more than a show about a love story between Elena and Stefan. It's a show about a town. It's obvious that the writers are taking the time to craft, and create, a well-populated and interesting town. We have vampires in town, they have added witches to the mix and - in this episode - there are broad hints of werewolves on the horizon. These two scenes of foreshadowing make me even more excited for the show's future than I am anyway.

Matthew Davis proves himself to be a great addition to the cast playing, what I assume is, a vampire hunter.

It feels as if each episode of these first ten has ending on a high-point/revelation/cliff-hanger of some sort. And this is no exception. Elena is in great danger as the show fades to black. A situation that reminds us of how the series' pilot started.

Defying Gravity. Episode 9. "Eve Ate the Apple" The crew finds out what their mission is, and Eve tells her backstory, in flashback.

An original, and awe-inspiring, take on the whole idea of first contact with alien life. Such a sharp contrast with the derivative new version of V. A show which is simply re-telling everything you've ever seen on every other similar show, and then you see a show like Defying Gravity, which has a great story and has an ability to reach out and touch you, and an ability to make you think.

FlashForward. Episode 9. "Believe" Bryce searches for the woman in his flashback, while she - in turn - comes looking for him.

A really good episode. While the ending was a bit predictable, I didn't care. I was just happy to have seen a pretty decent episode for a change.

Highlight? Defying Gravity (awe-inspiring)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago

Community, The Vampire Diaries, FlashForward

Friday, November 13th, 2009

05.00 Community
05.30 The Vampire Diaries
06.30 FlashForward

Community. Episode 9. "Debate 109" Jeff is blackmailed into joining the debate team. Pierce hypnotises Britta to stop her from smoking. Abed is making movies that predict the future...

The funniest episode so far. All three plots generated a lot of laughs. All of the regular/recurring characters generated a lot of laughs. It was brilliant from start to finish.

Chevy Chase doing his pratfall thing over a drum kit was a real highlight for me, happening - as it did - when Britta was supposedly under hypnosis.

Abed is basically a rip-off of Sheldon from The Big Bang Theory but in some episodes - such as this one - they are able to make him more than that.

Alison Brie really shines as Annie in this one, as the show toys with the idea of her and Jeff being attracted to one another. Since Annie is much too young for him, this led to a lot of great comedy moments. In fact, the Jeff/Annie pairing has much more comedy potential than the Jeff/Britta pairing that the show usually deals with. Every scene he shares with Annie in this episode is funnier than any scene he's shared with Britta in previous episodes. For that reason, I wish they would consider doing this for one than one episode.

The Vampire Diaries. Episode 9. "History Repeating" Damon reveals that he came to Mystic Falls to release Katherine who, he says, is not dead. Alaric Saltzman arrives. Bonnie and the girls hold a séance.

Top notch stuff, as the show continues to tell us more and more about the world that these characters live in. Matt and Caroline have cute scenes, Matthew Davis makes a strong debut and Bonnie gets more pivotal to the main story.

Great final scene, too. Great twist.

FlashForward. Episode 8. "Playing Cards with Coyote" Simon and Lloyd play poker to decide what to do next.

A big come down after a pretty good episode last week. The poker game is simplistic and silly. And many of the assumptions/deductions that the FBI heroes make in their investigations are also simplistic and silly.

Highlight? Community (Jeff and Annie?)
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Community, The Vampire Diaries, Defying Gravity, Warehouse 13, FlashForward

Friday, November 6th, 2009

05.00 Community
05.30 The Vampire Diaries
06.30 Defying Gravity
07.30 Warehouse 13
08.30 FlashForward

Community. Episode 8. "Home Economics" Jeff is living out of his car.

Chevy Chase cracks me up. He steals the show, for me, most weeks, even though I do like all of the cast. In this episode, his character joins a band and sings a song attacking Britta. It's only on-screen for a few short minutes but it had me in hysterics long after the episode was over. Superb.

The Vampire Diaries. Episode 8. "162 Candles" Lexi visits.

Arielle Kebbel makes a great impression as Lexi, Stefan's best friend, who pops in to visit him for his birthday celebrations. The character is full of fun, and genuinely nice and she allows Elena (and us, of course) to see a new side to Stefan. Nice.

And, it must be said, her exit is simply stunning. And keeps us in awe of Damon.

Defying Grafity. Episode 8. "Love, Honor, Obey" Solar Flare.

A great story-of-the-week and a major step forward in the story arc. Plus, an awesome cliff-hanger.

The crew dynamics are fascinating to watch, and it's cool to see them start to put the pieces of what's been happening to them together.

Warehouse 13. Episode 8. "Duped" Fake Myka in Las Vegas.

Whenever a female regular is replaced by an 'evil twin' on a genre show they tend to act like a total sexpot. And this is no exception. Joanne Kelly appears to be having a lot of fun as Evil Myka, and the idea of the real one being trapped in a mirror is crazy, in a fun way.

FlashForward. Episode 7. "The Gift" Blue Hand Clubs.

Lee Thompson Young takes center stage in this superb episode, as Al decides he simply cannot live with the future that he saw for himself. It's a great episode, marred only slightly by the fact that it seemed (from several episodes back) as if something like this would happen. Never mind, it's still good solid storytelling.

Even if...

It does stretch things a lot to assume that this is first time someone who saw a flashfoward died too soon.

Highlight? The Vampire Diaries (Lexi)
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Community, The Vampire Diaries, Castle, FlashForward

Friday, October 30th, 2009

05.30 Community
06.00 The Vampire Diaries
07.00 Castle
08.00 FlashForward

Community. Episode 7. "Introduction to Statistics" Halloween party.

Very funny episode (the funniest in a while) that gives all of the cast something good to do.

The drug-switch gag is pretty old, but it works here and makes me laugh, so who cares?

The Vampire Diaries. Episode 7. "Haunted" Halloween. And death.

Another one that packs a punch. It features the death of a regular character. A character that has dies multiple times, but - this time - it will probably stick and they will stay dead.

The best scene was probably the final one, as Damon steps up and does something nice for Elena. Sure, he's still the bad guy (for now) but in moments like these the writers lay the foundations of his salvation.

Castle. Season 2, Episode 6. "Vampire Weekend" Halloween.

Another winner. Once again (due to Halloween) the case-of-the-week is larger than life. Which is fine. These kind of crimes work well on this show.

FlashForward. Episode 6. "Scary Monsters and Super Creeps" Halloween.

Pretty weak carry-on from last week's (good) cliffhanger.

Mark's running after the kids in costumes was stupid on different levels: stupid storytelling, stupid character decision from Mark and stupid writers to think that we (at home) are going to get excited about this, and believe that anything significant is coming from it.

Lloyd finally arrives in Mark's house, and... it's quite a boring meeting. The aftermath is worse: Mark and his wife have 'a talk'. Painful stuff. Some of the most overwrought, badly written and badly acted television I've seen in quite a while.

Highlight? The Vampire Diaries (packs a punch)
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Community, FlashForward, Defying Gravity, Warehouse 13

Friday, October 23rd, 2009

05.30 Community
06.00 FlashForward
07.00 Defying Gravity
08.00 Warehouse 13

Community. Episode 6. "Football, Feminism and You" Britta learns girl talk, and everyone is concerned with football.

I still like the show a lot, because of the characters, but this is nothing special. In fact the Britta-learns-girl-talk storyline is very TV and rather dumb and unfunny.

FlashForward. Episode 5. "Gimme Some Truth" The guys are attacked in Washington.

I have to admit there was something cool about watching Stan, Mark, Demetri, and Vreede on their excursion to Washington, particularly when they hit the karaoke bar. They really did look like a bunch of workmates hanging out. This show doesn't get much right, but they got that right, at least.

This week's script even managed to pull off a bit of switch/twist with regard to Stan's friend. Very much the kind of thing that Lost excels at. Meaningless here, though, because it has nothing to do with the overall story. In isolation it's just a gimmick. So well done on that, FF, but how about getting back to the main story.

The gun battle at the end was pretty cool looking, but one feels that it's just another kind of padding to keep the show from moving the story forward. Which is frustrating.

Janis getting shot surprised me, tho. And, to be honest, I have no idea if she will live or die. Which is great. If the show could do that kind of thing more often...

Defying Gravity. Episode 7. "Fear" Halloween episode.

Another strong case-of-the-week which, more than ever, feeds directly into the story arc behind the show. While the needs of the corporate sponsors create tension and drama in here-and-now, we can see that things are getting worse for the crew. And it all builds to a superb moment between Donner and Zoe.

Flawless.

Warehouse 13. Episode 7. "Implosion" Samurai Sword.

A sword that makes the wielder invisible? That's just crazy, so you really have to take a leap of faith to buy it...

But if you do, it's worth it. This is a fun show, and they are fleshing out the characters and the world that they live in. This episode introduces elements that are sure to reappear in the the show again.

Highlight? Defying Gravity (flawless)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago

Community, The Vampire Diaries, Defying Gravity, FlashForward, Arrested Development

Friday, October 16th, 2009

05.00 Community
05.30 The Vampire Diaries
06.30 Defying Gravity
07.30 FlashForward
11.00 Arrested Development

Community. Episode 5. "Advanced Criminal Law" Cheater.

The practical joke plotline was awful (hard to watch, in fact) and the main plot (mock trial) was character-driven and nice, but not exactly funny.

The Vampire Diaries. Episode 6. "Lost Girls" Flashback origin episode.

Wow. This one really packed a punch. Which is superb. And, looking back, it's all really obvious now and I should have guessed. That, too, is superb.

This show is a prime example of confident storytelling. In that respect, it reminds me of Lost. Carefully, slowly, handing out bits of information but never boring us while keeping us waiting (like FlashForward).

Defying Gravity. Episode 6. "Bacon" Paula loses a thumb.

Another superb episode. I'm enjoying this show more now that I know the characters better. I really feel like going back and watching the early episodes again, now that I appreciate better who these people are.

FlashForward. Episode 4. "Black Swan"

When I read that Dominic Monaghan was joining this dumb show I decided to give it another chance. Result? Another hour of pointless padding and a quick snippet of Monaghan at the very end.

Hmm. The snippet was good. And interesting. And served to make one of the regular characters interesting for the first time, but...

it was a long boring hour in the lead up to it.

Arrested Development. Season 3, Episode 9. "S.O.B.s" The party to Save Our Bluths.

One of the best things I have ever seen on television occurs at the end of this episode when Michael gives a short speech about his family, that has many parallels with the situation surrounding Arrested Development, the tv show. I can't think of a time I have, more clearly, seen a tv show address it's audience/fans in this way and comment on it's own impending cancellation.

It blew me away the first night I saw it (I'll never forget that) and it still blows me away, all these years later.

As does the episode. Very, very funny and full of references to it's own plight as a low-rated TV show.

Highlight? The Vampire Diaries (flashback origin episode)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago

Community, The Vampire Diaries, Defying Gravity, Warehouse 13, FlashForward

Friday, October 9th, 2009

05.00 Community
05.30 The Vampire Diaries
06.30 Defying Gravity
07.30 Warehouse 13
09.00 FlashForward

Community. Episode 4. "Social Psychology" Shirley and Jeff bond (over gossip), while Annie uses her friends as test subjects.

Some good laughs and some nice observations (friendship formed using gossip about others to full the awkward silences in chit-chat). It's not exactly fresh observations, but they are honest and (carried by this cast) the show is likable.

The Vampire Diaries. Episode 5. "You're Undead to Me" Car-wash episode.

Lots happens in this episode and all of it is good. Very good, in fact.

It's very cool that Bonnie's powers are growing, but the show (wisely) makes it cooler by letting Stefan see the event.

This is also the episode where Elena starts putting the clues together. A sign that she's no fool, and a sign that the show isn't afraid to move this forward at a brisk pace.

Defying Gravity. Episode 5. "Rubicon" The mission reaches the point of no return.

Another slow-moving and deep episode. Man, for anyone willing to think about they stuff they are seeing this is a rewarding show. For the second week in a row, the case-of-the-week is actually quite good.

But this show is about the characters and the over-arc mystery. And, let's face it, both are superb.

Warehouse 13. Episode 6. "Burnout" Learning the fates of two former agents.

Another pretty solid case of the week, with the added bonus of a former agent adding her experience into the mix. Although the pilot would never indicate it, this show has quite a talent for good self-contained stories every week.

FlashForward. Episode 3. "137 Sekunden" Mark and Janis go to Germany.

This is dreadful. Horrible rubbish.

Mark and Janis must make a deal with a Nazi war criminal, which leads to scenes of discussion about the morality of it all. Like you've seen on a hundred other movies and TV shows. It can be an example weak, obvious storytelling on a poor show, but it shows up here as particularly bad when you consider that these particular heroes are investigating a world-wide crisis. At least that what the viewers at home are thinking. The characters in the show, based on this plot and others, seems to have lost sight of that fact.

This particular viewer at home (when it came time for the bit about the crows) was also thinking: well, here's one show I won't be watching ever again.

Highlight? The Vampire Diaries (lots happens in this episode)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago

Michael And Michael Have Issues, Community, The Vampire Diaries, Defying Gravity, Warehouse 13, FlashForward

Friday, October 2nd, 2009

05.00 Michael And Michael Have Issues
05.30 Community
06.00 The Vampire Diaries
07.00 Defying Gravity
08.00 Warehouse 13
09.00 FlashForward

Michael And Michael Have Issues. Episode 7. "Frogbox" Prank war with the hosts of a rival TV show.

The final episode is the weakest. This show is funny because it is about two dicks who fight with one another and make life hell for everyone who depends upon this. But, in this episode, they work together and team up against two other guys who - in response to Michael and Michael's behaviour - are also behaving like jackasses.

Thing is: it's not as funny when there are others behaving just like them. And it's not as funny when Michael and Michael are working together.

I applaud the effort to tweak with the formula. But it didn't make me laugh. Well, I laughed when the guys were trapped by the frogs.

On the plus side, it's great to see H. Jon Benjamin as a guest star, as he was my favourite part of the excellent Home Movies.

Community. Episode 3. "Introduction to Film" Britta funds Abed's desire to make films.

There was only one really great laugh (when the girl fell off the desk) but this was still a very amusing and enjoyable episode (driven, largely, by the performance of John Michael Higgins who has a better tutor-character than Ken Jeong).

Community seems very concerned with the going for the aw-moment every week. It was great last week, but it wasn't quite as special this week. I was impressed that they had found a way to make Abed's film make sense of his behaviour up to that point, but I still felt it was a very emotional storyline, when what I basically wanted was a few laughs.

Ok, I guess I'll just have to adjust since I do like the show and want to keep watching it.

The Vampire Diaries. Episode 4. "Family Ties" There's a big dinner party affair to celebrate Founder's Day.

The final scene throws open the show's backstory in all sorts of great ways. I can't wait to see what that develops into.

Speaking of throwing the show's stories wide open, Bonnie's growing powers are getting more interesting every week.

Finally, there's Ian Somerhalder who is a ton of fun to watch as an over-the-top bad guy.

Defying Gravity. Episode 4. "H2IK" The ship loses power.

The best episode so far. The story-of-the-week is the best they have had (the first good one, really) and all the character stuff, and backstory stuff, both of which are always superb, are the best the show has delivered so far.

Donovan's encounter with his dead lover sent chills up and down my spine.

But the coolest thing, by far, was all the stuff with the H2IK and the friendship between Donovan and Ajay. Really, really wonderful.

Warehouse 13. Episode 5. "Elements" Cape that allows wearer to pass through stuff.

Not as strong as last week, but this is a good one. The case-of-the-week is fun, and the guest cast are good. Also, there's lots of continuity with last week and the return of the character who set last week's story in motion. The show seems set to add her as a regular and that works for me, she's a good addition to the group.

FlashForward. Episode 2. "White to Play" Utah.

It opens weak, but gets stronger as it goes on and the final third is really, really good. With lots of developments I didn't expect so soon.

I like the relaxed/fun atmosphere that exists inside the offices of the good guys, and the teamwork in general is appealing. The Courtney B. Vance character is fun.

The revelations, in the final minuets, concerning Agent Noh, and Mark's daughter's flashfoward, were the best things about the episode. Two weeks in a row and the show has managed a creepy cliff-hanger. Nice.

Highlight? Defying Gravity (H2IK)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago

Michael And Michael Have Issues, Community, The Vampire Diaries, Defying Gravity, Warehouse 13, FlashForward

Friday, September 25th, 2009

05.00 Michael And Michael Have Issues
05.30 Community
06.00 The Vampire Diaries
07.00 Defying Gravity
08.00 Warehouse 13
10.00 FlashForward

Michael And Michael Have Issues. Episode 6. "Sh... Bag House" Michael Ian Black forces Michael Showalter to accept an invitation to stay over at his place, then kicks him out after a minor incident.

Perfect. Everything that happens is typically absurd, but - this time - there is a nugget of truth in the midst of it all. Showalter accepts an invitation he doesn't want to, just to be courteous, and it comes back to bite him on the ass.

As often happens in real life, I find.

This altercation ends with excrement being smeared across someone's house.

That rarely happens in real life, I find.

But it sure is funny here.

The sketches are funny, too. The buying-a-new-bed skit goes on a tiny bit too long, but it is nonetheless great.

Community. Episode 2. "Spanish 101" Jeff and Pierce work together on an assignment.

There's a moment towards the very end of this, where Jeff suddenly realises that Pierce does look up to him, that really got to me in my soft spot. It was wonderful.

Joel McHale is the perfect performer for material like this, and he's well paired with Chevy Chase for the insanity that follows. Community seems like a show that wants to make us feel, as well as laugh, and it could get sickly sweet very fast. But it won't, I feel, because of McHale.

The Vampire Diaries. Episode 3. "Friday Night Bites" Football.

The death of the coach seemed a little unnecessary (how many people are going to die, anyway?) but this was a fun episode for exploring the character of Damon (how awesome is Ian Somerhalder?) and the powers of Bonnie (who knew she'd be such an interesting character?).

Meanwhile, the Jeremy/Vicki romance gets more compelling.

Truly, this show is not putting a foot wrong.

Defying Gravity. Episode 3. "Threshold" Ted goes MIA, leaving the Antares without leadership. Paula gets very sick. Ajay adjusts to life as a civilian.

This show started strong and every episode peels back the layers of the onion a bit more.

The scene where Eve and Rollie (on Earth) watched their partners (on the Antares) was haunting and sad. The camera angles did all the storytelling. And it was powerful.

While the stories of the week continue to be mundane, the characters and the mystery make this an A+ TV show every week.

Warehouse 13. Episode 4. "Claudia" Artie is kidnapped, and haunted by his past.

W13 is all over the place. The show lacks consistency, delivering episodes of varying quality. This time out, the episode is nothing short of superb. The performance of Allison Scagliotti does a lot to sell the story, and she gets wonderful support from Saul Rubinek, who never ever puts a foot wrong in anything that he does. The man is amazing.

After all the crazy fighting last week, Myke and Pete are again written/played as a likable team that is fun to watch.

FlashForward. Episode 1. "No More Good Days" Everyone on the planet blacks out, sees a vision of April 29, 2010 and...

Brannon Braga and David S. Goyer deliver a solid premise and an enjoyable hour of TV.

Joseph Fiennes is an earnest, if unspectacular, lead. Indeed all of the cast - thus far - are fine, without being overly exciting.

The central mystery is a good one, and - even better - it promises a pay-off before the end of the season. That's wise.

Highlight? FlashForward (mystery)
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A Briefing With Michael: One Year Ago