Long delayed (mostly) TV roundup
Dec. 27th, 2015 08:40 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jedi_of_urthIt's a fairly small one, I haven't really been using the holidays to catch up on things as I'd kind of thought might happen.
Flash 2x09
Barring the stinger, this was much more a Christmas episode than it was a mid-season cliffhanger, which was kind of nice to see. Yeah there was still a threat and action and drama and everything, but there was a real air of Christmas-y-ness even in all that, rather than just being an episode that happens to be set around Christmas. I have to ask why Henry isn’t around for Christmas though, seems like he ought to be, like he might want to spend his first free Christmas in years with his son; that seems a no-brainer to me. Actually now that I say that I’m starting to wonder if this could be leading somewhere, like Henry kind of blames Barry for these years he’s lost so he’s running away even though he should be holding on tight. Given all the other fatherhood drama Barry is caught in (also where was he to give Oliver the tell the truth advice to last week?) it definitely could be going somewhere. I also have to ask why Barry was doing so much ridiculous running during his pursuit of Martin, aside from to make it seem more dramatic when Martin couldn’t really have been going all that fast. I did mostly like this episode, and I put the pieces together early about Wally coming into the story, I just seem to have this Christmas perhaps might have been a little bit more.
Arrow 4x09
That one on the other hand was entirely mid-season-break cliffhanger. I liked the episode, but it did feel sort of scattered in places. Some things were really well paid off, including some things that had slipped my mind like Lance not knowing Malcolm was still alive, but not all of it worked or at least didn’t work when all taken together. I can’t exactly think of anything off the top of my head after the ending, but it was something I felt at times through the episode. I also felt it was doing a decent job playing with the flash-forward from the premier as it had hints that a few characters might be the one who ultimately doesn’t make it through; but seeing as this is episode nine rather than 19 that wasn’t related to what might happen in this episode. I’m less worried about Felicity than I am sad; even though I don’t think she’s dead, I’m just expecting it to hurt when we come back to the story. This may also be continuing her transformation into Oracle. Also, the flashbacks were stupid, possibly going to be revealed to be necessary when we see the season flashback arc play out, but really really boring for this week. Last thought, that all I could think in the nearly-last-scene was of the X-Files movie, something sinister and ill-explained is being done with corn.
Agents of SHIELD 3x10
That episode was pretty meh. We were back to the blue day for not really night look on the alien planet, this episode clearly would have had more (or any) emotional resonance in I had ever believed either the Jemma/Will or Coulson/Rosalind relationships as those were the emotional notes they were trying to hit, and the conclusion doesn’t do anything for me at all. I felt far more when it came to Andrew/Lash’s actions than I did for most of the main plot points, and I really don’t know how long they can keep up the Lash storyline since everyone has pretty much decided Andrew is gone and can’t be brought back. I’m not saying it was a bad episode exactly, but I didn’t get a lot out of it beyond 45 minutes of meh entertainment.
Downton Abbey 6x09
I suppose that was about as good as we could have hoped for, but I don’t think it was great. I think I may have more thoughts once I rewatch the season (eventually) but as is I felt it was...okay. Some parts were good a decent amount was meh, I don’t know that much was bad. And as a finale I think it resolved what it needed to resolve even if it felt more like it was getting ready for another season more than being an ending. I think what they were going for was a ‘life goes on’ type ending, and there’s definitely value in that, I’m just not sure it did a very good job of it; it was also trying to be a ‘and they lived happily ever after’ which really doesn’t fit I don’t think, maybe that’s what’s bugging me about it. I don’t know, having just finished it I haven’t really sorted out my thoughts. I’m really looking forward to Mr. Selfridge coming back though, even if early reports say it’s ending this year too.
Flash 2x09
Barring the stinger, this was much more a Christmas episode than it was a mid-season cliffhanger, which was kind of nice to see. Yeah there was still a threat and action and drama and everything, but there was a real air of Christmas-y-ness even in all that, rather than just being an episode that happens to be set around Christmas. I have to ask why Henry isn’t around for Christmas though, seems like he ought to be, like he might want to spend his first free Christmas in years with his son; that seems a no-brainer to me. Actually now that I say that I’m starting to wonder if this could be leading somewhere, like Henry kind of blames Barry for these years he’s lost so he’s running away even though he should be holding on tight. Given all the other fatherhood drama Barry is caught in (also where was he to give Oliver the tell the truth advice to last week?) it definitely could be going somewhere. I also have to ask why Barry was doing so much ridiculous running during his pursuit of Martin, aside from to make it seem more dramatic when Martin couldn’t really have been going all that fast. I did mostly like this episode, and I put the pieces together early about Wally coming into the story, I just seem to have this Christmas perhaps might have been a little bit more.
Arrow 4x09
That one on the other hand was entirely mid-season-break cliffhanger. I liked the episode, but it did feel sort of scattered in places. Some things were really well paid off, including some things that had slipped my mind like Lance not knowing Malcolm was still alive, but not all of it worked or at least didn’t work when all taken together. I can’t exactly think of anything off the top of my head after the ending, but it was something I felt at times through the episode. I also felt it was doing a decent job playing with the flash-forward from the premier as it had hints that a few characters might be the one who ultimately doesn’t make it through; but seeing as this is episode nine rather than 19 that wasn’t related to what might happen in this episode. I’m less worried about Felicity than I am sad; even though I don’t think she’s dead, I’m just expecting it to hurt when we come back to the story. This may also be continuing her transformation into Oracle. Also, the flashbacks were stupid, possibly going to be revealed to be necessary when we see the season flashback arc play out, but really really boring for this week. Last thought, that all I could think in the nearly-last-scene was of the X-Files movie, something sinister and ill-explained is being done with corn.
Agents of SHIELD 3x10
That episode was pretty meh. We were back to the blue day for not really night look on the alien planet, this episode clearly would have had more (or any) emotional resonance in I had ever believed either the Jemma/Will or Coulson/Rosalind relationships as those were the emotional notes they were trying to hit, and the conclusion doesn’t do anything for me at all. I felt far more when it came to Andrew/Lash’s actions than I did for most of the main plot points, and I really don’t know how long they can keep up the Lash storyline since everyone has pretty much decided Andrew is gone and can’t be brought back. I’m not saying it was a bad episode exactly, but I didn’t get a lot out of it beyond 45 minutes of meh entertainment.
Downton Abbey 6x09
I suppose that was about as good as we could have hoped for, but I don’t think it was great. I think I may have more thoughts once I rewatch the season (eventually) but as is I felt it was...okay. Some parts were good a decent amount was meh, I don’t know that much was bad. And as a finale I think it resolved what it needed to resolve even if it felt more like it was getting ready for another season more than being an ending. I think what they were going for was a ‘life goes on’ type ending, and there’s definitely value in that, I’m just not sure it did a very good job of it; it was also trying to be a ‘and they lived happily ever after’ which really doesn’t fit I don’t think, maybe that’s what’s bugging me about it. I don’t know, having just finished it I haven’t really sorted out my thoughts. I’m really looking forward to Mr. Selfridge coming back though, even if early reports say it’s ending this year too.
