Some TV roundup
Feb. 7th, 2018 11:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
jedi_of_urthThis is pretty much just the shows I usually review, I’ve been watching several other things but not reviewing them because I was moving through them quickly. I’m now caught up on Jane the Virgin (I still like the show just no real thoughts on it as I go through it), have watched most of s2 of The Crown (I’ll probably keep watching the series, but there’s very little I actually like about it), and have watched most of Victoria (it’s a lot like The Crown but I think I like it a little more, but that may just be that I’m newer to it); and comparing those last two will probably need some thoughts once I am caught up. I am not, however, caught up on Supergirl or Flash, but I’m enjoying watching other things a lot more so they can wait.
Arrow 6x11
I liked a lot of things about that episode, but I don’t think I have a ton to say about it. I am feeling kind of fuzzy about everything at the moment so that’s basically the problem.
I’m still not convinced on trusting Vigilante, but thinking about it, I kind of think it would be interesting if the show did ultimately redeem him, outside of Oliver himself (and Sara back in s2) the show really hasn’t asked us to accept a character who went to the dark but became a hero in spite of that, who maybe still isn’t that great a person but is fighting the good fight. I’m not prepared to trust that that’s what’s going on here, or that if it is the writers are quite going to pull it off, but I think it could be interesting.
I like that the B Team is shown to be doing a good job without the A Squad, and to be mature enough to work together on bigger missions that need everyone working together. It would be so easy to make them be out of their league and needing to run home to daddy (Flash and probably Supergirl would have), but that’s not how they come across. They do come across a little petulant about the whole thing still, but it’s basically what I said last time; they’re not in the wrong, but nobody is really right.
Sigh, the show is actually making me kind of okay with the plot of Oliver being a parent, and William being a character. I’m still not convinced it was the best idea the writers could have had, but I do think they’re doing pretty good things with it. Even if Oliver is terrible at not creating more evidence that he’s probably the Green Arrow (hmm, the Green Arrow was very dedicated to saving Oliver Queen’s son, I wonder if all the people saying they’re the same person might have a point). Although I am kind of more interested in Felicity and William’s relationship that Oliver and William’s.
Agents of SHIELD 5x09
This episode was quite literally a transition episode, getting the characters from one point to another, but I do wish they had taken more time for actual character development while moving the pieces forward. There were some nice moments but overall I felt it was kind of hollow for what would have been a good time to be very character focused. That’s often been my problem with the show as a whole, it has decent plots, and pretty good characters, it just so rarely lets us really dig into the characters.
Also, maybe don’t shake the camera around to show how much the plane is unstable, and then have the big fight scene seem like it’s not an issue.
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend 3x10
This is a sort of weird one, where I think I quite liked the story but didn’t particularly like it musically. Neither song was bad, and there have certainly been some over the years (including this year) that I’ve really disliked, these are just ones that I can’t imagine setting out to listen to outside when I eventually rewatch the episode; I also do kind of like it when they play around with when and how they show the credits, so I enjoyed that gag well enough. I do like getting a good Heather plot, and this was good for that; although the end is not something I would have expected, this group baby plot is pretty weird (it already was but it just got weirder).
Supergirl 3x10
So I’m starting to catch up, and I am very aware that I haven’t really missed this show. I may hate Flash a lot of the time, but I kind miss it more than I do this one, I just have such a meh reaction to everything on this one. That said, I guess this one was fine, we’ll see if the writers can actually make me believe their commitment to Kara being her real self rather than Supergirl; they’ve tried to take that stance before but I haven’t believed it since s1. I will say that I think James and Lena had slightly better chemistry here than they have in the past, though I still can’t quite say I’m on board with this ship.
The Good Place 2x12
Part of the reason I didn’t do a reaction last week was because I had assumed it was the kind of slow episode before a two part blowout finale, and...instead we got this. It’s interesting, but I don’t know that I liked it. I don’t like that more than half of it is basically just Eleanor with a little bit of Michael, I want more from the other character than this. And if this had been only part of a longer finale that gave us insight into the other characters it might have been better. It was fine, and sets up for a very different scenario next season, but I didn’t find it all that satisfying for now. Plus I don’t think Michael’s point that the whole system is flawed was given enough time in the spotlight, because that’s a point I’ve needed them to make for a long time.
Arrow 6x12
I...didn’t really like that episode very much. It wasn’t exactly bad but I didn’t connect with it at all. We weren’t given nearly enough time to even trust Vince much less like him for his death to have any meaning. I’m still more attached to Anatoli than I have been to Vince for one second he was on screen. Yes, Dinah’s grief is well enough handled, but I don’t feel any of it with her; sympathy, but no empathy.
And I’m sorry Dinah, but the decision not to insist the team all go after the bomb was the absolute best Oliver could have given it. It was clearly a trap, and yes, you had to go and try what you could to save him, but that wasn’t really the right choice. And yes, if it had been Felicity or Lyla, Oliver and John would have done exactly what you did, but they would have been wrong to blame the other team then for trying to save more people. Not that they wouldn’t have done it necessarily, but it would have been just as wrong and you would have been at least as quick to point out the cold logic of it as they were. And I’d say Oliver at least would be just as likely to go on a murder spree as Dinah’s threatening; but at the same time he’s exactly the wrong person to try and go talk to her at the end.
I’m having a hard time finding the words for my reaction to Thea and Lance’s dealing with Siren this time out. I’m not even saying this moves her beyond redemption in an episode where we’re supposed to feel bad about Vince’s death and he wasn’t much better; and Oliver is still a barely reformed serial killer even if no one talks about it anymore. Again, it’s well done, and I do actually feel for them (especially Quentin) but I can’t agree with them.
Also, what is this verse’s obsession with Aruba?
Agents of SHIELD 5x10
So this paints a fairly clear picture of where the rest of the season is going to go, they’ll be back in present day trying to prevent the future they saw in the first half of the season. Thing is, as this is a shared universe we have to assume they’re going to succeed...but we’ll come back to that. Since they appear to be taking the rest of the month off (for the Olympics I gather) that means the season will be running until sometime mid to late May, probably after Infinity War is out. Which I think could actually work, if some things happen as they could in the movie, that on the heels of fighting Thanos, with plenty of the Avengers out of action, either dead or injured, a Kree invasion comes to kick Earth while it’s down. It might make more sense than usual that SHIELD isn’t involved in the movie events since they aren’t going to be in much position to help.
Practical concerns like that out of the way, do I think they’ll let Coulson die as the narrative way to stop this future from happening? I am not at all surprised that he’s supposedly dying, I basically called that from his conversation with Robbie about why Ghost Rider didn’t fight to keep possession of Coulson (it sure sounded to me like there was something wrong with Coulson); anytime over the summer I would see fic that said that trapped in space was the price for the deal with the Rider I’d think ‘that wasn’t the way I read those scenes.’ And if the writers decided going in to this season that the show should end after five seasons, killing Coulson is arguably the way the show should end. Although Coulson also already seemed to be dead in the version of the future we saw in Robin’s story so by that logic he dies either way and it would certainly be better for it to be in the service of saving the future than because that future came to pass.
But...show, if you’re going to kill Coulson, there are so many things you should be doing with the character before he goes. His arc this season has not been that satisfying even without it being potentially his last stand. However, give me all the Philinda angst from here on out and I’ll feel better (and sadder, but I like angst). She’s buried him before, she will not stand by and let it happen again.
As an episode this was...okay I guess. It’s kind of more of an interesting idea than a good episode at this stage, but we’ll see how I feel when I get to consider the whole picture.
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend 3x11
Again, I didn’t really care for this one musically, but I think I liked it as an episode. I’m kind of glad that they skipped forward in time, this show has done a better job than most of keeping track of how much time has passed in story and they had fallen quite a bit behind since there were no summer breaks in the story. Also, this will likely allow them to end the season with a baby, so there’s that. I pretty much like how everyone’s plot was moved forward, at least that’s my first reaction, well see if I feel that way for remainder of the episodes.
Arrow 6x11
I liked a lot of things about that episode, but I don’t think I have a ton to say about it. I am feeling kind of fuzzy about everything at the moment so that’s basically the problem.
I’m still not convinced on trusting Vigilante, but thinking about it, I kind of think it would be interesting if the show did ultimately redeem him, outside of Oliver himself (and Sara back in s2) the show really hasn’t asked us to accept a character who went to the dark but became a hero in spite of that, who maybe still isn’t that great a person but is fighting the good fight. I’m not prepared to trust that that’s what’s going on here, or that if it is the writers are quite going to pull it off, but I think it could be interesting.
I like that the B Team is shown to be doing a good job without the A Squad, and to be mature enough to work together on bigger missions that need everyone working together. It would be so easy to make them be out of their league and needing to run home to daddy (Flash and probably Supergirl would have), but that’s not how they come across. They do come across a little petulant about the whole thing still, but it’s basically what I said last time; they’re not in the wrong, but nobody is really right.
Sigh, the show is actually making me kind of okay with the plot of Oliver being a parent, and William being a character. I’m still not convinced it was the best idea the writers could have had, but I do think they’re doing pretty good things with it. Even if Oliver is terrible at not creating more evidence that he’s probably the Green Arrow (hmm, the Green Arrow was very dedicated to saving Oliver Queen’s son, I wonder if all the people saying they’re the same person might have a point). Although I am kind of more interested in Felicity and William’s relationship that Oliver and William’s.
Agents of SHIELD 5x09
This episode was quite literally a transition episode, getting the characters from one point to another, but I do wish they had taken more time for actual character development while moving the pieces forward. There were some nice moments but overall I felt it was kind of hollow for what would have been a good time to be very character focused. That’s often been my problem with the show as a whole, it has decent plots, and pretty good characters, it just so rarely lets us really dig into the characters.
Also, maybe don’t shake the camera around to show how much the plane is unstable, and then have the big fight scene seem like it’s not an issue.
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend 3x10
This is a sort of weird one, where I think I quite liked the story but didn’t particularly like it musically. Neither song was bad, and there have certainly been some over the years (including this year) that I’ve really disliked, these are just ones that I can’t imagine setting out to listen to outside when I eventually rewatch the episode; I also do kind of like it when they play around with when and how they show the credits, so I enjoyed that gag well enough. I do like getting a good Heather plot, and this was good for that; although the end is not something I would have expected, this group baby plot is pretty weird (it already was but it just got weirder).
Supergirl 3x10
So I’m starting to catch up, and I am very aware that I haven’t really missed this show. I may hate Flash a lot of the time, but I kind miss it more than I do this one, I just have such a meh reaction to everything on this one. That said, I guess this one was fine, we’ll see if the writers can actually make me believe their commitment to Kara being her real self rather than Supergirl; they’ve tried to take that stance before but I haven’t believed it since s1. I will say that I think James and Lena had slightly better chemistry here than they have in the past, though I still can’t quite say I’m on board with this ship.
The Good Place 2x12
Part of the reason I didn’t do a reaction last week was because I had assumed it was the kind of slow episode before a two part blowout finale, and...instead we got this. It’s interesting, but I don’t know that I liked it. I don’t like that more than half of it is basically just Eleanor with a little bit of Michael, I want more from the other character than this. And if this had been only part of a longer finale that gave us insight into the other characters it might have been better. It was fine, and sets up for a very different scenario next season, but I didn’t find it all that satisfying for now. Plus I don’t think Michael’s point that the whole system is flawed was given enough time in the spotlight, because that’s a point I’ve needed them to make for a long time.
Arrow 6x12
I...didn’t really like that episode very much. It wasn’t exactly bad but I didn’t connect with it at all. We weren’t given nearly enough time to even trust Vince much less like him for his death to have any meaning. I’m still more attached to Anatoli than I have been to Vince for one second he was on screen. Yes, Dinah’s grief is well enough handled, but I don’t feel any of it with her; sympathy, but no empathy.
And I’m sorry Dinah, but the decision not to insist the team all go after the bomb was the absolute best Oliver could have given it. It was clearly a trap, and yes, you had to go and try what you could to save him, but that wasn’t really the right choice. And yes, if it had been Felicity or Lyla, Oliver and John would have done exactly what you did, but they would have been wrong to blame the other team then for trying to save more people. Not that they wouldn’t have done it necessarily, but it would have been just as wrong and you would have been at least as quick to point out the cold logic of it as they were. And I’d say Oliver at least would be just as likely to go on a murder spree as Dinah’s threatening; but at the same time he’s exactly the wrong person to try and go talk to her at the end.
I’m having a hard time finding the words for my reaction to Thea and Lance’s dealing with Siren this time out. I’m not even saying this moves her beyond redemption in an episode where we’re supposed to feel bad about Vince’s death and he wasn’t much better; and Oliver is still a barely reformed serial killer even if no one talks about it anymore. Again, it’s well done, and I do actually feel for them (especially Quentin) but I can’t agree with them.
Also, what is this verse’s obsession with Aruba?
Agents of SHIELD 5x10
So this paints a fairly clear picture of where the rest of the season is going to go, they’ll be back in present day trying to prevent the future they saw in the first half of the season. Thing is, as this is a shared universe we have to assume they’re going to succeed...but we’ll come back to that. Since they appear to be taking the rest of the month off (for the Olympics I gather) that means the season will be running until sometime mid to late May, probably after Infinity War is out. Which I think could actually work, if some things happen as they could in the movie, that on the heels of fighting Thanos, with plenty of the Avengers out of action, either dead or injured, a Kree invasion comes to kick Earth while it’s down. It might make more sense than usual that SHIELD isn’t involved in the movie events since they aren’t going to be in much position to help.
Practical concerns like that out of the way, do I think they’ll let Coulson die as the narrative way to stop this future from happening? I am not at all surprised that he’s supposedly dying, I basically called that from his conversation with Robbie about why Ghost Rider didn’t fight to keep possession of Coulson (it sure sounded to me like there was something wrong with Coulson); anytime over the summer I would see fic that said that trapped in space was the price for the deal with the Rider I’d think ‘that wasn’t the way I read those scenes.’ And if the writers decided going in to this season that the show should end after five seasons, killing Coulson is arguably the way the show should end. Although Coulson also already seemed to be dead in the version of the future we saw in Robin’s story so by that logic he dies either way and it would certainly be better for it to be in the service of saving the future than because that future came to pass.
But...show, if you’re going to kill Coulson, there are so many things you should be doing with the character before he goes. His arc this season has not been that satisfying even without it being potentially his last stand. However, give me all the Philinda angst from here on out and I’ll feel better (and sadder, but I like angst). She’s buried him before, she will not stand by and let it happen again.
As an episode this was...okay I guess. It’s kind of more of an interesting idea than a good episode at this stage, but we’ll see how I feel when I get to consider the whole picture.
Crazy Ex-Girlfriend 3x11
Again, I didn’t really care for this one musically, but I think I liked it as an episode. I’m kind of glad that they skipped forward in time, this show has done a better job than most of keeping track of how much time has passed in story and they had fallen quite a bit behind since there were no summer breaks in the story. Also, this will likely allow them to end the season with a baby, so there’s that. I pretty much like how everyone’s plot was moved forward, at least that’s my first reaction, well see if I feel that way for remainder of the episodes.
