Grey's Anatomy: Ridin' Solo (21x12)

Tom Koracick... mouse misogynist and Beatles fan... you'll always be famous.

Cons:

Okay, so, I'm going to heroically refrain from harping on about how Nick is boring. He's... there, and he's being supportive of Meredith which is good I guess. Whatever. However, I do have kind of a complaint/question about the Meredith plot here? I really wish there had been a moment where Meredith and Amelia had been like "oh my god, this is so exciting that Tom's research is actually yielding helpful information, we should team up with him and learn more" and then Tom could be even more of a jerk and reject their offer of collaboration, and then Meredith could have her whole "shame on you" moment during the application process, and Tom could win, and Meredith could decide to do it on her own.

Without that essential piece, the question just sort of lingers over this episode. Why can't these people who are all researching the same thing, work together on it? I get the idea, that Tom is just chasing fame and Meredith is truly passionate about the subject matter... but it just feels like a pooling of resources situation would make sense here. Tom even brought up that Meredith published her abstract for anybody to use, and Mer and Amelia were like "yeah, but we weren't thinking of you when we did that." Like... grow up, I know Tom is an immature baby, but you should be above that!

Grey's Anatomy: I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For (21x11)

Nick can fuck right off!

Cons:

I seriously hate that man, he's both boring and terrible to Meredith, where the hell did he get off trying to chastise her about her decision about the liver? I feel like my girl Meredith Grey has done plenty of criticism-worthy stuff over the years but right now she is a SAINT for the way she's dealing with these men in her life (Nick, Richard) who are being so condescending and shitty to her. I also just don't feel the chemistry or connection between Nick and Meredith. That ending scene where they're talking about how they'd go to any lengths to protect each other and how they can't imagine their life without each other? It just... it inspired nothing in me. They just don't have that spark, they aren't believable to me as a couple. And Richard giving Meredith a half-ass, grudging "I can understand why you did what you did" talk? Screw you, Webber, you owe her an unequivocal apology and you're lucky Meredith is being such a saint about this. Yeesh.

Grey's Anatomy: Jump (for My Love) (21x10)

Richard sucks, what the helllll.

Cons:

Okay, we all know my longstanding dislike of Catherine Fox, and she did annoy me this episode by trying to excuse Richard's behavior and make it about "oh, it's hard when your mentor is also family" or whatever. Like, no... stop excusing Richard's behavior. But honestly, I do appreciate that Meredith and Catherine are able to be adults and converse about professional things without being whiny little babies about it, so in that regard, I have to say that Richard Webber wins first prize for unreasonableness this week. His petty little avoidant act with Meredith is infuriating! And why? Because she didn't break HIPAA and tell Richard about Catherine's cancer? Dude, take it up with your wife, not with her doctor! I find the argument for why his anger is excusable so flimsy and nonsensical. He needs to get a grip. Poor Meredith didn't do shit to deserve this!

Nick continues to be boring, but he didn't do anything to piss me off too badly this week. He's just kind of set dressing to me, to be honest.

Grey's Anatomy: Hit the Floor (21x09)

Guess which romances in this episode I don't give a shit about? All of them!

Cons:

I don't even want to belabor the point because I'm just repeating myself, but in short? Jo and Link suck and don't work as a romance, and Link was seriously getting on my nerves in this episode. He's weird about the women he dates, he gets too intense about them. This is what ruined the Amelia/Link thing too, except that theirs was a relationship I did enjoy, and this one with Jo is bad and also is supposed to be endgame unless one of the actors wants to leave the show before the other one. I hated the implication that Jo had "never had a stable adult relationship before" because like... I know this show took a giant crap all over Alex Karev on his way out the door, but you cannot say their relationship wasn't a stable and adult relationship before that. Yeesh.

Outlander: A Hundred Thousand Angels (7x16)

Do you ever cry for ten thousand years over the death of a fictional wolf on a TV show? RIP Rollo...

Cons:

Okay, I will say... the Faith thing is dumb? I don't know, y'all. Maybe this is going to happen in the books too but from what I remember about the book version, Claire has this fantasy about maybe Faith lived but it's all pretty vague and unsubstantiated and it's not really true. I really hate the implication that it might be literal here. And like, what are we meant to understand by Frances singing the song, that newborn infant Faith Fraser remembered her mother singing to her and actually remembers the words? That makes zero sense whatsoever, even in the mystical magical logic that this show sometimes implies. I guess we'll wait and see what they do in the final season, but I found that to be a rather dissatisfying cliffhanger. Plus, if true, Jane is William's niece technically speaking which is a little yikes for me, I must say!

I liked the conversation between Brianna and Brian but there was a bit of a pacing weirdness with it, I could have used maybe a bit of tightening and maybe just make it like 20 seconds shorter? It felt like the sentimentality was dragging a bit and undercutting the sincerity of some of what was happening.

Outlander: Written in My Own Heart's Blood (7x15)

A pretty solid and exciting installment!

Cons:

Obviously this show hovers on the edge of being cheesy a lot of the time, and honestly I wish that we'd be trusted as viewers a bit more to feel the love and connection between Jamie and Claire, without the weird flashbacks where they're stargazing? It just felt a little hammy to me, like maybe they could have gone a little more subtle with some of the conversations about life and death and war and whatnot. I know a lot of this is material listed from the book, but even so, it took me out of the emotions a little bit. These performers are strong enough for me to feel the depth of what's happening just looking at their faces, we don't need to gild the lily here!

In the books, there's a hidden compartment in the desk drawer at Lallybroch that Brianna and Roger both know about, and Roger hides his letter to Bree there. The way they did it here was just to have him lay it in an empty drawer, which I thought was a little silly? Like, the idea is that it's ambiguous. That letter was already there when Bree and Roger bought Lallybroch in the 20th century, or at least it could have been, and they were just destined never to find it until the circumstances tracked.

Bob's Burgers: Advice Things Are Ad-Nice (15x10)

Going to rapid-fire this one, I'm on a bit of a time crunch today.

Cons:

I wasn't particularly interested in the Teddy subplot this week, it felt very paint by numbers to me... Teddy gets in too deep with some shenanigans, and then succeeds at the last second but only kinda sorta? I guess I wanted to see more of this secret society and maybe meet some fun and wild side characters that populate that world. Maybe we'll circle back to this concept another time and get some of that.

Pros:

The core plot this week involves Tina being volun-told to run an advice column in the school paper. She immediately tells her siblings that she's the anonymous advice-giver, but her big secret doesn't really lead to much at first, because nobody writes in. Then Louise, feeling bad for her sister, steals Tina's journal and uses it to fabricate messages from an insecure eighth grader. Linda gets roped in to making the messages sound more authentic.

Outlander: Ye Dinna Get Used to It (7x14)

Is it my birthday?? John Grey-centric episode, Hal, PERSEVERANCE WAINWRIGHT?? Ahhhhh.

Cons:

Okay, like, obviously there is a ton about this show where you just kind of have to hold your nose and pretend this is like, a parallel fantasy reality that's not our own, but I have to say: the dinner scene with General Washington was just so icky to me. Everyone's getting all reverent and patriotic and Washington is painted very much in his mythic "father of our country" sort of vibe. And the whole time it's just like... yeah, future President George Washington, who also owned human beings as chattel? And Claire is not shown to have any sort of thoughts or feelings about this whatsoever. The show has always been so awkward about this, not wanting to look at it head-on. Like the Jocasta stuff at River Run always bothered me too, because Claire reacts to it more like it's casual bigotry that she's having to grin and bear for the sake of social politeness, and not literally, you know, the institution of slavery. I'm not saying Claire should throw a drink in George's face, that wouldn't be very strategic of her, for one thing. But I do wish the show didn't have her be quite so giddy and honored to be in his presence and receiving a Betsy Ross flag as a gift from him. It's yucky.

Doctor Who: Joy to the World (2024 Christmas Special)

I really really love Ncuti Gatwa in this role, y'all, he brings such an amazing energy to the Doctor... I wanna keep him for a long time...

Cons:

This is an extremely cheesy episode and honestly that's exactly what the doctor (hehe) ordered, but there was one moment that didn't work for me, and that was the ending with the Doctor literally saying "oh, I get it! You're joy!" Like, yeah, we get it, Doctor. We got it from Joy saying the same thing as she ascended to become a big light in the sky. It was this weird unnecessary repetition of the cheesy conclusion and I didn't need it quite so spelled out for me? Same with Joy's mom in the hospital literally saying Joy's name out loud as she saw the light. Again, trust the audience maybe a little bit more to get what you're doing without saying it all out loud!

Outlander: Hello, Goodbye (7x13)

After the high of the last few weeks of so much Lord John, I was bracing myself to be a little less invested in this week's installment. But it was another really strong showing!

Cons:

I used to harp on this a lot back in the old days and then it seemed pointless to keep bringing it up, but I should mention here once again that Sophie Skelton is the weak link acting-wise on this show. There's this moment when she's all offended at the sexist police implying that she might have been having an affair with Rob Cameron, but Skelton's acting is so weird in the scene that it actually seems like Brianna is lying about that? I don't know. It's unfortunate that she's not as strong a performer, so when the dialogue isn't stellar she can't carry it off like most of the others. Also, why doesn't Brianna at least tell them that Roger wants to steal money from them? Why hide that? I understand she can't tell the cops about hidden gold and time travel, but not providing any reason for Rob to kidnap her kid just made her look guilty as hell.

I really liked the stuff with Roger and his dad, it was genuinely moving. But I do wish that the end of this episode's moment of realization had been framed a little different. Here, it's presented like the idea that Jem isn't here in this time is something Roger is just now realizing. Even though surely he would have had suspicions about this from the second he realized that his father was here in the 1730s. I wish it had been framed more as "I've been thinking it for a while now but I was in denial..." rather than it being a new idea just occurring to Roger. Especially since we the audience know that Jem is in the 20th century already, so there's no bite to it.

What We Do in the Shadows: The Finale (6x11)

It's so wild to finish watching this finale and then hop over to Tumblr to see people lamenting and grieving for this epic queer-bait on one hand, and then other people throwing a party because Nandermo is canon now, and I'm just like... what show did you all think you were watching? lol. This was a fun finale.

Cons:

This finale cemented once and for all that the Guide was pretty useless as a character, and I hate saying that because I love the actress and I wanted her to have more to do. But her final character beat is that Cravensworth's Monster is really horny for her? The alternate ending where she's a detective on the case of the vampires was really funny, and it was the first solid bit they've given Kristen Schaal all season, and that bums me out. They even get in a last mention of Nandor's feelings for the Guide, which again goes nowhere and isn't funny or clever or interesting. So that's a bummer.

Also, I want to be careful here because there's all this extra weight put on finales to be some big thing that both shatters and preserves the status quo and that's an impossible standard to live up to, but, the one thing I do wish for was a bit of a resolution or at least an escalation on the whole "the vampires have fallen down on the job of conquering the new world" plot. It's just that the season started with that, and I didn't need some gigantic world-altering payoff, but some sort of circling back in a way that felt like things ended with a bit of momentum into the nebulous future might have been nice? Not the end of the world, but whatever.

Bob's Burgers: Dog Christmas Day After Afternoon (15x09)

Christmas chaos with the Belchers! I love it.

Cons:

It's another story where Louise has to learn not to be selfish, and give something up so someone else can have a good experience - I love this story, but I have seen it a bunch of times on this show. I almost wish Gene had been the one to bond with the puppy, since it was his chocolate misadventure that started the whole thing, and then we could have a Gene-centric plot, which almost never happens

Pros:

The basic conceit of this one is that the kids really want a handheld video game console of some sort, and Bob and Linda can't afford it, leading to a crestfallen Christmas morning. I loved the bit about the kids remembering all their super obvious hints to their parents, and then the parents remembering all their super obvious hints that it wasn't going to happen - but of course, Christmas hope rings eternal, and the kids don't listen to their parents when they talk...

Outlander: Carnal Knowledge (7x12)

You ever watch an episode of TV and actively cackle at the events playing out on your screen? I have been in full-on cackle mode for this entire plot thread of this show. It's everything I could have asked for.

Cons:

So, I think sometimes this show's acting is stronger than its writing, by which I mean a stellar performance from Sam Heughan can often elevate a clunky line of exposition, or the genuine passion in Caitriona Balfe's face can elevate an otherwise cheesy moment in dialogue. That remains the case in this situation as well, but there have been a few moments in Jamie's dialogue specifically that felt kind of awkward. It happened last week when he was explaining about not being on the Euturpe, and it happened again this week when he's explaining to John about why he has soldiers chasing him. Just super clunky moments where he's having to lay out basic tenants of the plot for the audience that don't feel naturalistic.

What We Do in the Shadows: The Promotion (6x10)

Aww! This was so great!

Cons:

This show doesn't have a lot of consistency/follow-through from earlier elements, and I do find myself wishing that there would be an acknowledgment of Laszlo raising Colin Robinson from a baby. There's this whole thread with Cravensworth's Monster this season, where the two of them are basically co-parenting, and it would be funny to tie back that earlier father/son dynamic to what's happening now. But there's never any mention of it, which I just think is a missed opportunity!

This isn't really a complaint about this episode, but rather a fervent hope for the finale next week... I hope that the documentary gets a proper payoff, even in some small way. The moment where Jordan is trying to call "cut" at the end felt like it needed a punch-up, a bit more of a grand reveal about the documentary that's been in progress for such a long time. I guess we'll see if they have a good final bit about this next week!

Bob's Burgers: They Slug Horses, Don't They? (15x08)

Aww, sister episode!

Cons:

I thought the flashback about Linda and Gayle was kind of gilding the lily, this episode would probably have worked just lovely without that added context spelled out for us? I almost rather would have just had Gayle explain the story to the kids maybe with a bit of flashback happening then, rather than structuring it so that we saw it earlier, if that makes sense. A small nitpick!

Pros:

The basic premise here is just that Louise and Tina are fighting about their toys. But the real fight is about their roles in the family - Tina as the good responsible one, Louise as the mean brat. Louise resents that: she was being thoughtless with Tina's possessions, but she didn't mean to break her horse. Both of their feelings are really hurt because Tina thinks Louise thinks she's boring, and Louise thinks Tina thinks she's a screw-up. I liked that the outer surface of siblings fighting over their belongings was actually about a deeper insecurity in their relationship, that worked really well!

Outlander: A Hundredweight of Stones (7x11)

It really is the best shit in the whole series, no joke...

Cons:

The one bigger thing I was noticing in this episode was that it was lacking a sense of time passing - it was unclear to me how long it had been since news of Jamie's death reached them - how many days between then and the wedding, how many days later are they going to that dinner party, how many days later does Jamie show up? Because it kind of feels like it happens within a week, but I remember it was a bit longer in the book. This also contributed to some strangeness of pacing in that big final scene, where Jamie shows up and clumsily explains that his luggage was on the Euturpe but he himself was not. So much of that final scene was lifted from the book entirely, and it's a great scene, don't get me wrong, but it all happened kind of choppy and strange. I think we get some time in Jamie's POV in the books or something, so we have a bit more context for why he's being chased by soldiers? But maybe I'm misremembering.

What We Do in the Shadows: Come Out and Play (6x09)

I liked this one!

Cons:

So, back to the Guide/Nandor thing - I think I realized my core issue here. It feels like a potentially funny subplot that would happen in a single episode, but stretched out over the full season until it feels threadbare and irritating. Like, the bit where Nandor dramatically offers to die for the Guide, or the Guide letting him down easy and Nandor spacing out staring at her eyes, those were perfectly funny bits. But they come after multiple false starts that suggest a story and then never capitalize on it. The Guide has said her piece now, but it seems like Nandor hasn't gotten the memo, so are we just going to keep limping through jokes about them for the last few episodes of the show? It feels like they don't actually have good funny ideas with this plot thread and I am increasingly sure that the payoff won't be worth the setup, whatever it is. I wish "Nandor has a crush on the Guide" had been the plot of a single episode, basically. That could have worked.

Outlander: Brotherly Love (7x10)

Lord John! He's here! My bestest friend!

Cons:

When I was looking back over my reviews of the earlier half of this season, I saw how much flip-flopping I did about Rachel and Ian's relationship. In this episode, I did rather like the romance moment they had together. But I do need to reiterate my dissatisfaction with the Arch Bug plot thread. In the books it honestly feels kind of random and extraneous too, but in the show especially so - the fact that Rachel is held at knife-point and William shoots and kills a man in this episode feels so... random and unmotivated and out of scope for everything else the story is trying to do? Especially since, for the viewer of the show, the stuff with Ian killing Arch Bug's wife happened ten million years ago.

Not to be all "in the books" again, but... in the books, Claire takes on the role of rebel spy through her own initiative and successfully passes messages around many times before finally being suspected. It felt a little silly that she's discovered instantly her very first time out, when ostensibly there would have been no reason for everyone to abruptly suspect her at that point. Another book change is not having Fergus and his family around at this stage in the story. I've re-read John telling Claire about the Euturpe so many times that I remember vividly she's got some of her grandchildren underfoot at the time, and John's appeal to Claire is about saving Fergus and Marsali and the kids specifically, along with their other rebel friends. I don't mind the changes on principle, but I am sad because I always want to see Fergus.

What We Do in the Shadows: P.I. Undercover: New York (6x08)

This was a very funny one!

Cons:

There's a structural weirdness this season. A-plot stuff was set up early on and then nothing has come of it since. I think I'm noticing it as an issue more because this is the final season, so it feels like if we're building to something, we should make sure we have the time to fully explore it. So the stuff with their old roommate who's back from his nap and working with the Guide, it just feels odd that we spend so little time exploring that. And subplots like Lazlo's reanimated corpse seem to have stalled out as well. We'll see where it's all going, I'm just looking at the number of episodes we have left and feeling a little anxious...

Bob's Burgers: Boogie Days (15x07)

Aw, some bonding time for Bob and Louise! I love it!

Cons:

I think I could have used a final beat in the Teddy subplot to show him having turned around on the birthday party thing. Our final moment with him is him being bad at telling left from right and giving confusing instructions, but it didn't seem like he was ever reconciled to having the party thrown for him. Could have had some good comedy potential there, with either him turning around and being suddenly really enthusiastic, or him blowing up at Linda and storming out, and the others all continuing to have his party without him. Either way, something bigger might have been nice!