Doctor Who: The Husbands of River Song (2015 Christmas Special)

Miracle of miracles, this episode actually made me a little bit emotional about River Song. I'll try to forestall my usual complaints about her character, because most people have heard it before, either from me or from somebody else. In any case, this was a really proper sendoff for her character, even if it does cause some (more) continuity errors in terms of River's first appearance on the show, and last adventure with the Doctor in "The Silence in the Library." This installment wasn't all that Christmas-y, but it was fun and it was touching. Let's take a closer look.

Cons:

The basic plot of this one has the Doctor stumbling upon one of River's adventures pretty much at random. River doesn't recognize him, because he doesn't have one of his twelve known faces. Adventures ensue, fun times are had, and then when River is in danger, the baddies think that the Doctor might show up and try to save her. She gives a big impassioned speech about how the Doctor isn't stupid enough or in love enough to risk anything for her. He's a monument, a god, greater than any mere mortal. He wouldn't waste his time on her. The worst part is... she seems to believe what she's saying. When she finally realizes that the Doctor is the Doctor, she's shocked.

Elementary: The Cost of Doing Business (4x06)

Yikes. Morland Holmes is not messing around here. This was a seriously intense installment of Elementary, but most of that intensity was concentrated in the last two minutes. The rest of the episode was a bit more standard. Let's take a look.

Cons:

Most of this episode focused on Sherlock and his father, which I loved, but as a result, Joan's role in events was very diminished. There were a few reminders of Joan's distaste for Morland, and Sherlock told her to make her own opinion now that he was really in their lives, instead of hating him on principle. All of this was very interesting, but it was such a very brief part of the episode as a whole. I would have loved to have seen some more interactions between Morland and Joan, because they've started to set up a very delicious rivalry there. I think we might see more as the season progresses, with Joan and Morland each holding on to Sherlock and basically fighting over his soul. This episode might have been a good place to set up some of this, but the opportunity was missed.

Insert standard complaint here about the lack of Gregson and Bell - similarly to Joan, they got pushed to the side this week. I'd love to see these two interact with Holmes Senior as well. Basically, stick Morland in a room with any of our characters and I'd love to see the result. I think we need to start integrating Morland into the story proper with a bit more strength.

The Big Bang Theory: The Opening Night Excitation (9x11)

Talk about free advertising for Star Wars, huh? I mean, not that they need it. Record breaking opening and all. I still haven't seen it, but now our characters have! What did they think, and what did I think of this episode? Let's take a look.

Cons:

This week, the guys go to see Star Wars. Sheldon stays behind because it's Amy's birthday, and so Howard, Raj, and Leonard bring Wil Wheaton along with them. Normally I love the simple humor he adds to an episode, but here his jokes fell rather flat. He came to the Star Wars premiere dressed in a Starfleet uniform, remarking that he wanted to maintain his loyalty to Star Trek. He then tells the boys to stop thinking so hard about the new movie. Whether it's great or it sucks, life will go on exactly the same. While I suppose this is sound advice for people who let their emotions become too entangled in pop culture, I can't help resenting the message a little bit. The Big Bang Theory clearly has no real concept of the importance that media can have on the real world. Things like Star Wars do matter, for what they say about the society that produces and consumes this type of media. Why do we, as a culture, feel drawn to this type of story? Should we ignore the reactions from fans to the casting of a black lead, and what that says about the racism still prevalent in American society? I think media often requires deeper thought than most people would like to give it.

The Big Bang Theory: The Earworm Reverberation (9x10)

At first glance, there are a lot of things to praise about this episode, but there are unfortunately some overlaying problems that cloud my ability to be totally complimentary. Let's take a look.

Cons:

Well, the big thing this week is that Amy and Sheldon have gotten back together. While I liked the way this episode portrayed the reunion, I'm a little disappointed that the show didn't try to get more out of the separation. We were starting to see hints that Sheldon understood his mistakes of the past, and that Amy was starting to learn to stand up for herself. But I could have done with a lot more of that before the inevitable reunion. The Big Bang Theory has been notoriously bad at prolonging A-plots, so I guess this was as good as we could hope to get. But still. There was more that could have been done.

The other "Con" is a bit more nebulous. Has anybody else noticed that Penny and Leonard have had nothing to do since the beginning of the season? They've become comedic side characters, with less screen time than Raj and Howard. I hope that the second half of this season focuses on them again. I'd like to see them actually settling in to married life and perhaps getting away from Sheldon once and for all.

Elementary: The Games Underfoot (4x05)

This was one of those episodes of Elementary that just hits you right in the sweet spot. It wasn't one for the history books, but it was exactly what I wanted at this point. Something comfortable and solidly good.

Cons:

The actual twist in the case this week ended up derailing a lot of the buildup. Basically, for most of the story you believe that the victim was murdered over an old rare video game collectible, but then it turns out the guy accidentally stumbled upon an evil business man's money-saving toxic waste scheme. It felt a tiny bit out of left field. Not enough to be distracting or a huge problem or anything, but definitely not my favorite resolution to a mystery.

The Vampire Diaries: Cold as Ice (7x09)

This was a good episode. Not a great episode, but a good one. It certainly ended with a bang, and I'm really anxious to see the next installment.

Cons:

Caroline and Alaric have a subplot where they deal with Caroline's mystical pregnancy. It seems that pregnancy hormones for a vampire cause a lot of blood cravings and a quick temper. Her behavior isn't so different from an ordinary pregnant person's mood swings, but because she's a vampire it's getting dangerous. Alaric tries to be comforting, but Caroline freaks out and nearly attacks him. Caroline ends up visiting her mother's grave to talk it over. See... it's not the actress's fault, but I just don't find this "pregnant Caroline" story line at all compelling. Knowing where it ends up makes me uncomfortable. I don't like the idea of Caroline and Alaric as an actual couple. I think what bothers me the most about this is that it feels so disconnected from the main plot of the week. If they want to do this whole "Caroline is pregnant" thing, shouldn't Stefan be a central player in this? He's off dealing with Julian, and as such the pregnancy subplot feels totally underutilized and awkward.

For the first time, the flash-forward is in the "Con" section of one of these reviews. The only new piece of information we get is that Stefan and Valerie are apparently an item in the future. I mean, I guess I'm not really all that surprised, but I also don't care. I don't see the chemistry between them and I'm far less intrigued by this surprise pairing than I am by the whole Enzo/Bonnie thing. Which we saw none of this week, by the way. Stefan is gearing up to go after the mysterious female adversary who has kidnapped Caroline and Damon. He very condescendingly leaves Valerie behind for her safety, even though she'd undoubtedly be useful to him and she's a bad ass vampire witch. That was annoying.

Modern Family: White Christmas (7x09)

Great episode, with a few weaker threads to deal with. Let's jump right in.

Cons:

The plot involves the entire family going to a cabin in the woods for Christmas. Mostly this worked really well, but there was a subplot with Luke, Manny, and Lily involving the two boys trying to scare Lily by telling her the house was haunted. The episode tag shows that Luke had locked himself in the perpetually locked room by accident, as his family leaves him behind. These little glimpses of horror-parody clashed pretty badly with the idea of Christmas spirit that they seemed to be going for overall. It wasn't awful, but it just didn't fit.

Alex's subplot got a little lost in the shuffle as well. She ends up befriending a woman named Fig, who came to the cabin because her family comes there every year. Apparently they all took off to Hawaii without her, and she didn't even know about it. Cam kindly invites Fig to stay with them. She's an overwhelmingly negative woman, and Alex immediately gravitates towards her. Fig is the smartest in her family, and has alienated herself from everybody else. Alex declares that this woman is her ghost of Christmas future, and she tries to be less negative. There were things I loved about this plot thread (see below!) but it sort of tapered off into nothing. It would have been nice to have some sort of emotional resolution, and show some real growth for Alex's character. As it was, nothing really progressed because of this plot thread.

Supernatural: O Brother Where Art Thou? (11x09)

I mean I'm not surprised, but I am heartbroken for Sam. Seriously I'm so scared for him and I just love him so much I want to wrap him in a blanket and protect him from the world.

Cons:

So, the main thrust of this episode is that Sam insists on talking to Lucifer, and Dean grudgingly agrees they don't have any other option. While Sam is busy with that, Dean gets caught up in following Amara's trail. Turns out that Amara has started to up her game, and is killing people. She ends up whisking Dean away to where they can be alone, and then proceeds to be very creepy and tell Dean they belong together and actually kiss him and ewwwww. Honestly, I have no problem with a romance between Dean and Amara in theory, but in execution everything about this feels wrong. I'm hoping that we're supposed to feel profoundly uncomfortable. As far as I can tell, Dean is under some sort of magical compulsion when it comes to his weird connection to Amara. That is not consent. The actual Dean Winchester, with all his faculties about him, wouldn't be engaged with Amara in this way. It's freakin' disturbing and I can hope it's handled with grace and proper consideration for the issues of sexual assault that are being raised. I'm not optimistic, though.

No Cas this week! I don't care about him not being in the C-plot episodes, but it's a little unpardonable that he wasn't even mentioned this week. Not for any love I have for his character, but for the fact that the Winchesters are dealing with Rowena, Crowley, Amara, and Lucifer here, some of the most powerful players on the board. Why would Cas not be involved? Why would he not be consulted? It's a plot hole.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Maveth (3x10)

What the what?! Did they just... I'm not sure if I'm okay with this, in all honesty. There's a lot of stuff to be concerned about. Let's just jump in.

Cons:

The main thrust of this episode takes place on the alien planet, as Ward leads the Hydra team, with Fitz, try to find the monster and take it back out through the portal. Fitz finds Will, and convinces Ward that they need him to get back out. All goes well, as Will and Fitz manage to take out the other Hydra agents, leaving Ward behind and injured. However, as they get closer to where the portal will reopen, we get a surprising twist - Will isn't Will at all. It's the Inhuman monster, inhabiting Will's body. Apparently, Will died saving Jemma. I'll talk in a minute about the excellent execution of this twist. But at the same time, I can't help thinking... what the heck was the point of all that? Will was introduced as nothing more than a love interest obstacle for Fitz and Simmons, and after all that buildup now we learn that he's dead? Ugh! What a waste of all of our time! As much as I do ship Fitzsimmons, I was actually looking forward to seeing what they could do with his character once he got out of the alien world and started interacting with our team. That was a squandered opportunity.

Similarly, it looks like Ward is actually, seriously, dead. That's... that's just HUGE. And I don't like it. There's something sort of lazy about introducing an incomprehensibly evil force and then having it conveniently house itself in a human receptacle to make it easier for our heroes to interact with. The same sort of thing is happening in Supernatural right now with the Darkness, and I am just not a fan. Ward is way too cool of a villain to be dead. It just sucks because I felt like even after all this time, we had only scratched the surface of what could have been one of the greatest TV villains ever to grace the small screen.

Once Upon a Time: Swan Song (5x11)

Holy Hell. That was... that was... well, it wasn't anything that particularly surprised me, but it did its job in terms of landing an emotional blow. I won't be shaking this one off in a hurry. And now we have to wait until March to see what's next?!! Argh!

Cons:

While this episode hit me in all the right emotional spots, and all my favorite characters had great moments, I would be remiss if I didn't point out a rather disappointing fact. This episode was a huge mess where the plot is concerned.

First of all, this was not at all an adequate wrap-up to Season 5A. I hope that in 5B we continue to resolve some of these dangling plot threads, because there are a lot of them. Most significantly, there's Arthur. The entire presence of Camelot in this plot thread led up to exactly nothing useful, other than Merlin supplying the origin story of the first Dark One. What about Arthur's evil hold over all of Camelot? What about his bewitching of Guinevere, and the forbidden love between Guinevere and Lancelot? None of that was at all resolved.

Same goes for Merida. While I truly enjoyed the moments she had on the show, particularly the last few times we saw her, what was the point? She fed into the main story very infrequently. I can only hope that her character has more to do in the future, because thus far there hasn't been a satisfying reason for her presence whatsoever. Everything with Merida feels like a weird, disjointed one-shot. Very well done in its own right, but what does it have to do with anything?

Doctor Who: Hell Bent (9x12)

I don't know... I mean, that was certainly much better than I would have expected given how poorly last week's episode went, but at the same time, I'm still annoyed. It's frustrating because I wanted to be moved and impressed and all that... but I can't quite manage it. This was much better than I had any hope to expect, however. Let's take a look.

Cons:

The Doctor, now on Gallifrey, is out for revenge against the Time Lord's high council for indirectly causing Clara's death, and for trapping him in the time loop castle of doom last week. Basically, the High Council is terrified of retaliation from the Doctor. First they send troops to try and bring him in by force, then they send envoys who bow down to them. When Rassilon finally turns up personally to get the Doctor to come forward, the Doctor wins the loyalty of his troops, because he's a "war hero." He effectively takes over the High Council and banishes Rassilon from the planet. See, the problems I have with this are difficult to describe, but it all goes back to one of my main complaints against Moffat - it's all too epic. The Doctor's uber-importance is emphasized again and again. All of Gallifrey is in awe of him. He's called a "war hero." I don't know... it seems counter to the very essence of what Doctor Who is supposed to be.

The Vampire Diaries: Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me (7x08)

Oh boy. Next week's episode looks like a doozy, and I can't wait. But for now let's talk about this week's adventures. Things are certainly heating up!

Cons:

But before we talk about the good stuff, let's talk about the annoying stuff. First of all, Enzo got a little subplot this week. It goes something like this: he asks Lily to run away with him so she'll be safe from Julian if things go wrong with Stefan and Damon's plans to kill him. Enzo and Lily share a kiss, but Enzo doesn't get the girl in the end, as Lily decides to stick around and help her sons. Enzo, depressed, decides to feed on a girl to achieve a "buzz." Matt stops him just in time, and tells him that he's totally useless and nobody wants him. Enzo retaliates by saying that Matt is pretty ineffectual too, as he has no real chance against Julian and the gang. Enzo goes outside, and is immediately hit with vervaine darts and carted into a truck. Matt appears and says he's enlisted some help to rid his town of evil. Enzo asks who these people are, but Matt says that Enzo should wait until they introduce themselves.

Modern Family: Clean Out Your Junk Drawer (7x08)

Okie dokie. No Luke and Manny this week, but we had lots of stuff going on with everybody else. Let's dive in.

Cons:

The main plot this week is that Gloria won a session with a couple's therapist at an auction, and this woman comes over to do her program with Gloria and Jay, Phil and Claire, and Cam and Mitchell. I liked a lot of stuff about it, and I'll talk about that in a moment. But there were definitely some missed opportunities, especially with Cam and Mitchell. Their discussions about coasters and leaving the light on didn't lead to anything deeper, and I didn't feel like their relationship shifted in any way by the end of the episode. This was a contrast to the other two couples, who had surprisingly real moments mixed in with the humor.

Supernatural: Just My Imagination (11x08)

I'm so happy I literally don't even know what to do. I cannot begin to describe to you how much I adored this episode. I was expecting it to be funny, and it was... but it was so much more than that. Let's jump right in.

Cons:

A teeny tiny complaint is that they didn't mention Cas at all. The only reason I'm even saying anything is because I absolutely love it when they toss his name in there at least once an episode, even if it's just to say "Oh, Cas is off doing research at such-and-such location." That's all I need to be totally content, so I always notice when they can't be bothered with even that much.

The other complaint is a bit more... complicated. Dean was kind of a jerk in this episode. I think what they were trying to show was that Dean's reluctance to accept the imaginary friends was because he was uncomfortable facing the truth that he hadn't always been there for Sam. But he just came across as kind of a dick, and I thought they could have toned it down a bit, or shown more of the complexities of Dean's feelings before the ending.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Closure (3x09)

Okay! This episode was pretty darn intense. I have one thing I want to discuss as a potentially troubling flaw, but the rest of the episode kicked ass.

Cons:

Rosalind Price was fridged. Pretty much by definition. She was killed by a man to hurt another man. There was, expressly, no other reason to kill her at this moment. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. is usually better than that, and I was quite disappointed to see such a tactic being used here. I don't think it's a problem to kill off female characters in general, but I felt like all that buildup with Price's character was wasted here, since she was clearly only a means to cause Coulson to fall off the deep end. It feels disrespectful to her character.

And on a less righteous note, Rosalind Price was interesting to me. I was annoyed about the simplistic twist last week, where we learn that she was working for Hydra but didn't know it. But even with that being said, I greatly enjoyed the complexities of her character, and thought she still had a lot to offer in the story. It's disappointing to have that potential cut short.

The Walking Dead: Start to Finish (6x08)

Oh noooooo. Things are intensssssse. Let's just dive right on in.

Cons:

I don't think I really have any cons here. I mean, there's the fact that Deanna is dead (or about to be), and I was just starting to like her, but that's not a real criticism of the show so much as it is a personal complaint. Same goes for the lack of Daryl, Abraham, and Sasha. They showed up at the end of the episode, but I was really hoping that I'd get to see Daryl come back to Alexandria and reunite with some of our people in this episode.

In terms of serious complaints, I guess the only thing I've got is that one of the subplots didn't do as much for me as the others. As the Walkers swarm into Alexandria, several groups of our core characters attempt escape, using whatever means they can. One of these little groups consists of Carol, Morgan, the Wolf prisoner, and Denise, who was there to try and tend to the Wolf's injury. This plot thread is continuing the theme of Morgan vs. Carol/Rick in terms of ideology. Maybe it was just its placement in an episode that had so much else going on, but I found these parts sort of dragged down the pacing. I love Carol, but I want to see her interact with my other favorite characters. All this separation is wearing down on one of this show's real strengths, which is the relationships between its key players.

Once Upon a Time: Broken Heart (5x10)

I don't know... while in theory this episode should have been a total winner for me, there were a few things that just didn't fully click. It wasn't bad by any means, but I just feel... sort of disheartened. Let's talk about it.

Cons:

So, the main plot of this week's episode is dealing with the fallout of the revelation that Hook is a Dark One. We see how in Camelot he is angry at Emma, but Emma tries to convince him that they can defeat the Darkness inside both of them, as long as they work together. Hook seems to trust Emma, and Emma proves her trust in Hook by handing over Excalibur. Then it turns out... nope! Hook has fully succumbed to the Darkness. He decides to enact his own Curse to get back to Storybrooke - that way, he can finally get his long-awaited revenge on Rumple, who is still back there. Emma tries to stop him, but Hook crushes Merlin's heart as a way to enact the curse. This is a loophole - Nimue loves Merlin, so since she is all Dark Ones, it works the same way as Hook crushing the heart of the person he loves. Emma adds in a memory erasure to the Curse, erasing Hook and everybody else's memories of the fact that he's the Dark One. She figures this way Hook won't remember why he enacted the Curse to get back to Storybrooke in the first place, and this will protect him.

Doctor Who: Heaven Sent (9x11)

My eyes have rolled so far out of my head that they've fallen straight out of my skull and are rolling down the hallway and down the stairs and out the front door and... yeah, you get the point. Seriously. Screw this.

Cons:

I'm going to start by saying that I know that this episode got a lot of very positive reviews. Frankly, I'm astounded by that. I thought this was a whole lot of pretentious drivel and for the most part it barely held my attention. But, since I know I'm in the minority on that opinion, I am going to try and talk about the elements that worked well, and why I think this episode impressed so many people.

So, my main complaint is that this episode contains two "plot twists" that just did not work for me whatsoever. Basically, the Doctor is trapped in a place he can't quite figure out, and he seems to be stuck in a time loop. The only way to stop a terrible monster from killing him horribly is for him to reveal a secret truth. In order to protect the secret of the "hybrid," a mythic half-Dalek-half-Time Lord, the Doctor allows himself to be killed again and again as he struggles to break through a barrier to get out of the prison.

Elementary: All My Exes Live in Essex (4x04)

This episode was pretty solid! It didn't overwhelm me with awesomeness or anything, but I greatly enjoyed it. Let's get started.

Cons:

The subplot this week was good, but it felt very disconnected from the main plot. Basically, it featured a woman doing research on Joan out of revenge for Joan poking around in police officer's lives. This woman, Cortez, doesn't think it's Joan's business. I thought this plot thread had a lot of potential, and it actually could have been a main focus for an episode or two. But instead of exploring it to its full potential, it was wrapped up too quickly, and didn't connect to the episode's main story.

And speaking of main stories, I'm not convinced that anything in this episode had anything at all to do with the A-plot. That's fine in theory, but with a long season like this, it's disheartening to lose momentum for the main event. There was only one very small mention of the elder Mr. Holmes this week.

Castle: Mr. & Mrs. Castle (8x08)

Okay, I don't mean to be so negative but... what the hell was that?

Cons:

Castle and Beckett are back together, proving once and for all that their separation was total nonsense. Nothing but a cheap narrative ploy to mix up things that did not need to be mixed up. Castle learns the truth about Beckett's plans to take down these evil drug people, and he confronts Beckett, asking her why in hell she had to break up with him to do this. Beckett goes on with some nonsense about protecting him, but Castle shoots down that argument just as firmly as I've been shooting it down all season - he points out that Beckett could have told Castle the whole truth and then they could have staged a breakup and took down the bad guy together. Castle says that Beckett is clearly broken, needing the obsession to drive her.

All of this would actually be a good point if Beckett's real behavior had backed it up during the season. But she "pushed Castle away" in name only, continuing to see him on a regular basis, and not fighting very hard against his attempts to fight his way back into her life. How does that indicate a broken person unable to form a good relationship? And how is that supposed to protect him from the baddies? It makes no sense. And if that's the explanation we're going with, why on earth did Castle forgive her so easily? It's pretty weak.

The Walking Dead: Heads Up (6x07)

What the heck? What the what the what the what? I'm just... what?

Cons:

Why did they even bother to try and fake us out with the Glenn death thing? What a cheap marketing ploy! Like, I figured what with all the hoopla surrounding his death that he had probably miraculously survived. But to tell us that just a few episodes later makes no sense. Why even bother to do any of this? Why did we have to think that Glenn was dead? I mean, nobody believed it, first of all. And second of all, it's just such a slap in the face to the audience to pull a "just kidding!" that's so uncreative that literally every single fan of the show had already predicted the exact outcome. Nicholas' body was the one being torn apart, Glenn gets under the dumpster. Uninspired to say the least.

Doctor Who: Face the Raven (9x10)

I'm annoyed. Not surprised, but annoyed. Siiiiiiggggghhhhhh.

Cons:

I'm not mad that Clara died. Honestly, I'm not. I mean it was pretty obvious it was coming, but still, I felt like it was an okay ending for her character. The companions have too high of a survival rate anyway. And nothing else would ever make Clara leave her adventurous life with the Doctor. Death was the only way. But here's the thing -  Clara's death was all about the Doctor. Did you notice that? In her final moments, she told the Doctor not to seek revenge. Okay, fine. But she didn't mention her students, or her family, or anything freakin' personal about herself. I think she may have mumbled Danny Pink's name once, vaguely, but for the most part these final touching scenes were all about Clara comforting the Doctor in her final moments. Seriously! It's not Jenna Coleman's fault, but Clara just sucks as a character. Her entire life and death revolve around the Doctor to the point that it's absurd. How is it that a character who actually has a canonical life outside of the Doctor (being a teacher) could fail to have any personality outside of him?

Grey's Anatomy: Things We Lost in the Fire (12x08)

This episode did not feel like a mid-season finale. It didn't have any over-the-top catastrophe with multiple deaths. None of our principle characters are in physical danger. A few big moments are interspersed with a lot of smaller details. Despite it not feeling as big as a mid-season finale normally does, I still greatly enjoyed what I got.

Cons:

Normally, I don't mind the voice overs in Grey's Anatomy, even if they can be a bit hokey. This week, though, the whole "fire" analogy felt particularly forced. The fire itself was rather unnecessary. We could just as easily have had all the patient-based plot threads this week without trying to centralize things with a big disaster. The only thing this served to accomplish was to have Bailey handle her first serious catastrophe as chief. This idea wasn't given a lot of time to develop, so it almost felt like it could have been done away with altogether.

Speaking of very little time to develop, Penny had almost no screen time in this episode. Believe me, I'm not complaining about that on principle - I'm not exactly a big fan of Penny, as I find her character to be pretty boring as of yet. But in terms of the pacing of this season, I find it odd that her character didn't have anything to do in the mid-season finale. It seems like after all that buildup and the fallout of her identity, she should continue to play a bigger role moving forward.

The Vampire Diaries: Mommie Dearest (7x07)

Okay! This is an episode with a lot of things to love, and a few things to grumble about. Let's take a look!

Cons:

Caroline is pregnant with Alaric's twins. I'm sorry, but it's just weird. And they did a fake out thing where at first you think she isn't, but it turns out the babies were just cloaked, so they've been there the whole time. This is just... weird. I'm very uncomfortable with the idea of Caroline being pregnant when she had no desire to be, and in a situation where she can't make decisions about her own body because the babies aren't even hers. It's strange and it feels very forced.

Valerie is actually growing on me a little bit as a character, but I hate the fact that Valerie is the one to tell Caroline about the baby that she lost at Julian's hands. I really thought Stefan should be the one to do that. It seems like the Stefan/Caroline romance is being ripped apart before it really gets a chance to get underway, and I'm feeling frustrated by the missed opportunities.

The Big Bang Theory: The Platonic Permutation (9x09)

Aww... I actually felt really bad for Amy in this episode! Unfortunately, this installment was kind of a dud, with the exception of one plot thread. Let's take a look.

Cons:

This week, we get a look at our cast of characters as they celebrate Thanksgiving. Penny and Leonard prepare to host a meal for everybody, but they get into a fight about Leonard knowing Penny better than she knows him. It all starts with Penny not knowing Leonard's birthday. However, Leonard accidentally lets slip a piece of information that he learned from reading Penny's private journal, and the argument escalates. Leonard ends up wearing lingerie that he got for Penny in order to embarrass himself and get her to forgive him. Nothing about this plot thread was particularly funny, and it also didn't offer anything high-stakes. Their argument was mostly played for laughs, although in my opinion not knowing your husband's birthday is pretty awful, and invading your wife's privacy by reading her private journal is pretty despicable. I think we were supposed to find this little spat amusing, but it didn't really work for me at all. In addition, this was another example of this show wasting opportunities. I wanted to see Penny and Leonard host a big fun Thanksgiving dinner, but instead we only saw the prep work and no real final result.

Elementary: Tag, You're Me (4x03)

Ehhhh.... kind of a weak one in my opinion. Not terrible, but not strong. Let's take a look.

Cons:

The cases themselves have never been the strongest thing about Elementary, but often they draw my interest by bringing in an interesting moral or political question. This week didn't have that. I won't go into the details, but basically this week our case involved a website that matched up people who looked similar, and proved that certain facial recognition software had serious flaws. The murderer ended up being a cop avenging his brother's death in a frat party's hazing years ago, but the crimes multiply as we find out that one of the guys from the site set up the murders. Nothing about this really clicked for me. It sort of felt like a couple of different cases being squeezed into one. There were no particularly interesting revelations, and Sherlock and Joan's involvement in the case felt lackluster. This was their first week back with the NYPD, and I wanted a bit more.

Speaking of that, we didn't have any good scenes between Sherlock and Gregson and Bell, as they welcomed him and Joan back from their brief hiatus. I thought maybe there would be some good character moments there, but there was nothing special about this case at all. It felt like any other week.

Supernatural: Plush (11x07)

Supernatural is killing it this season with the C-plot episodes. Awesome! Let's take a look.

Cons:

This episode ends with a scene of Sam and Dean in the impala. Sam discusses his visions of the Cage with Dean, thinking that maybe that's where the answers are about the Darkness. We also see Sam praying to God at the beginning, asking for answers about what he's been seeing. All of that is fantastic, and I'm so excited to see where it's leading. But Dean is being way too dismissive about this. He keeps brushing off Sam's concerns, and it's getting ridiculous. If you don't want Sam to lie to you, maybe you should try and listen to him when he talks, Dean! I feel so bad for Sam, because he feels so alone right now with these visions. I wish that Dean would take him a little more seriously.

Modern Family: Phil's Sexy, Sexy House (7x07)

Very funny episode. Best we've had all year. This is one of those episodes that plays to Modern Family's strengths. A series of silly misunderstandings, interconnecting plots bringing all the characters together, and a clear theme. Very nice!

Cons:

The only slight misstep of the episode was Manny's subplot with baby Joe. It wasn't even necessarily a bad subplot, but it didn't get a lot of time to be fleshed out, and wasn't particularly stand-out in any way. Basically, Manny uses Joe's adorableness to win favor with a girl he's invited over. Joe doesn't behave, latching on to the girl's leg and biting, pretending to be a "bad dog." Manny puts Joe in Stella's cage to punish him. Like I said, this just didn't have very much to offer.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Many Heads, One Tale (3x08)

It happened. It finally happened. Oh my God. I cannot even process this. I've been waiting since the pilot episode and it finally freakin' happened. C'mon, you all know what I'm talking about. Let's... start with some other things, though.

Cons:

So the twist with the ATCU this week is that instead of trying to cure Inhumans, it looks like they're shopping out fish oil pills to as many people as possible, trying to get people to transform. I like this twist, but what I didn't like was the super obvious twist on the twist, which was that Rosalind didn't know about it. I know I'm being sort of fickle, because last week I said that I hoped she wasn't Hydra. And I stand by that. But it just felt sort of obvious. The more Coulson yelled at her to reveal the truth, the more clear it was that Rosalind didn't know what was going on. Maybe I would have felt a stronger connection in this scene if Coulson could have given Rosalind the benefit of the doubt, instead of just jumping to conclusions.

Castle: The Last Seduction (8x07)

This episode was such a confusing mix of annoying and wonderful. I'm really happy with a few things, but still aggravated by a lot. Let's take a look.

Cons:

Hayley was in this episode, and I'm still struggling to figure out what the hell she's doing in this story. This week, she helped Beckett by going under cover at a spa and trying to uncover a woman with an adulterous secret. Was Hayley really the only person who was available for this? Aren't there other women working at the precinct? And what is Hayley, exactly? Is she consulting with the NYPD? I'm confused and I'm struggling to find her character interesting. There was one jarring moment when she asked one of the suspects to tell her the name of her tattoo artist because she really liked her tattoo. No offense, but the tattoo was a really basic pattern on the lower back. It was annoying, because if Hayley was going to make a point of talking about it, shouldn't the tattoo actually look cool?

Vikram also made an appearance, to annoyingly point out to Beckett that she shouldn't be spending time with Castle because of the ongoing dangers of their illicit research. Go away, Vikram. You make no sense and annoy me greatly. 

Once Upon a Time: Birth/The Bear King (5x08/09)

Oh my Gosh we have so much to talk about here. This is going to be an insanely long review. But hey, it's a double episode, and both halves were awesome. Let's get started.

Cons:

Well... the fact that this is a double episode is rather puzzling. Each episode individually was awesome, but they barely connected at all. Maybe it was just a scheduling issue, but I feel like the double episode week could have been saved for a different point in the season. Previous double episodes have been continuations. This was not. It was odd, and the second episode, while very good, definitely cut off the momentum of the first episode, which did more to carry on the A-plot.

This is a small thing, but it really distracted me. The actress playing Merida's mom Elinor looked way too young. She looked like she was the same age as her daughter, or at most only ten years older. I'm not sure why it bothered me so much, except for maybe the fact that I feel like older women don't get nearly as many opportunities in Hollywood.

The Walking Dead: Always Accountable (6x06)

Yay, Daryl! I missed him. Unfortunately, this episode wasn't as good as one might have hoped. I'm pressed for time, so let's jump right in.

Cons:

The pacing of this episode just felt a little... off to me. It sort of dragged. There wasn't enough solid focus on one character for the slow pace to work, like in Morgan's episode a few weeks back. And there wasn't enough switching things up between the characters for my attention to be suitably grabbed all the way through.

The plot of the episode is pretty basic - Daryl, Sasha and Abraham get separated on their way back to Alexandria due to a group of strangers shooting at them. Daryl gets kidnapped by a couple of new characters who appear to be on the run from the folks with guns. All of this would be compelling, but the new characters were not at all interesting. I wish I had had something more to grab on to with these guys, but as it stands I just couldn't feel invested.

Doctor Who: Sleep No More (9x09)

Unfortunately, this was not a good episode. I don't have a lot of positives to mention at all.

Cons:

This episode was found footage, with a twist. But even with the twist, I still think that this found footage thing is getting really old. And if you can't come up with something new and totally fresh to do with it, you shouldn't bother. I'm not convinced this episode totally knew what to make of its found footage framework, and although there were a few cool moments, for the most part there wasn't anything creative about camera angles or anything. The whole story could have been told just as effectively without this element.

Mark Gatiss wrote this episode, and usually I can depend on him to come up with creative and distinct characters. But this episode just didn't have that. In many ways, the setup reminded me of the "Under the Lake"/"Before the Flood" double episode, what with it all taking place in an enclosed space, and the focus on a group of people in mounting peril. But that story worked mainly on the merits of the very distinct and memorable characters. This episode didn't really have any standouts at all.

Elementary: Evidence of Things Not Seen (4x02)

I'm going to be brief in this review, because I'm pressed for time. Let's take a quick look.

Cons:

The case itself was sort of incidental, and I'm not going to spend a lot of time talking about it. Essentially a team of scientists are murdered, and their research is stolen. Turns out they were working on manipulating brain waves in an attempt to create a way of effectively influencing people's opinions. In the end, the stolen research was a red herring, because it turns out that they hadn't been at all successful in their experiments. Sherlock ultimately solves the case because he notices that a pet lab rat was also dead a the scene of the crime, and he puts together that a machine was used to cause the victims to suffocate, so that the killer could shoot them easily without resistance. There were lots of twists and turns, such as Chinese businessmen and missing laptops, as well. Nothing about the case really grabbed my attention, and I think it's because they were trying a bit too hard. I didn't really like the fake out as to the way the victims were murdered. Sure, they were shot, but first they were suffocated so they couldn't resist. Why not just deprive them of air and not bother with the gun? And some of the red herrings and outlier suspects were just a complete waste of our time.

The Big Bang Theory: The Mystery Date Observation (9x08)

This was a pretty cute episode, actually. It focuses on Amy and Sheldon and their struggles to move on from each other, with humorous results. Let's get started.

Cons:

There are a few jokes in this episode about Penny and Leonard's marriage. Penny says that she was forced to bring Leonard along with her now that they're married, and jokes that she threw away all her high heels because she's married to him now. That wouldn't bother me except for the fact that at the beginning of this season it seemed like maybe they were going to address real issues in their relationship, and now it's clear that their relationship is only being used for humor. For all the jokes that this episode made, it didn't really push anything forward on a larger plot level.

The Vampire Diaries: Best Served Cold (7x06)

Oooooooookay then? What the what?! Things got weird this week, and there are some parts of this that I'm not actually all that thrilled about, to be honest. But in other ways, this episode certainly shook things up and got me very interested in where we're going next.

Cons:

Caroline is apparently pregnant with Alaric's twins. At the wedding, the Gemini Witches in attendance were chanting something to save the babies, apparently transferring them into Caroline. I have had my fill of creepy vampire babies from Twilight, thank you very much. And while I'm sure this will be quite different from that, I'm still more than a little annoyed, if I'm being honest. It's just... weird. Caroline didn't have any say over this, and it's creepy and weird that she's suddenly carrying Alaric's children.

Faux-Jo dying so quickly was also a bummer. Apparently, since Jo is human and the soul inside her was a vampire, Jo's body can't withstand life for very long. While the scene of Faux-Jo dying was quite touching, it was odd to me that they wouldn't try and drag this out a bit longer. I was excited to see an interesting sort of friendship develop between Alaric and this person. It could have been a continuing plot thread for sure, and it's odd that it was discarded so quickly.

Grey's Anatomy: Something Against You (12x07)

This was a pretty standard episode of Grey's Anatomy, meaning that we spent time with a lot of our key players. It's going to be difficult to remember all of the stuff going on here, but I'll do my best not to go on too long.

Cons:

Jackson and April. I know I'm a broken record, but these two just don't really interest me. I like them both individually as characters, but when the plot line focuses on their relationship, and all its ups and downs, I just lose interest. This week, Jackson asks April out to dinner. April is thrilled, thinking this is a sign they can start repairing their relationship, but Jackson is intending the dinner to serve as a platform to talk about divorce. At the dinner, April gets paged to the hospital before they can get to the serious talking. They agree to talk later, and then at the end of the episode it looks like they've fallen back into bed together. This is going to be tedious, I can tell. April will be all happy and think they can repair everything, while Jackson will feel regretful and guilty. The roller-coaster is exhausting. They are by far the least interesting relationship on the show right now.

Modern Family: The More You Ignore Me (7x06)

Kind of a mess of an episode, unfortunately. There were a few things to enjoy, though.

Cons:

The Dunphy's plot was sort of all over the place. We learn that Luke stole the car to go see a girl, and got caught driving without his license. Phil decides to crack down on the punishment, while Claire is actually relieved to see Luke participating in normal teenage rebellion. This plot thread could have been interesting, and I can certainly think of many avenues we could have gone down with the idea of Luke being arrested. In particular, we could have explored the switched roles of Phil as the enforcer and Claire as the "cool" parent. Or we could have addressed Luke's problematic behavior with women. But instead of doing any of that, we got Phil worrying about his masculinity. Is it just me, or have we done this before? It's getting old! Claire is constantly having to reassure her husband that she finds him manly enough. It's very annoying.

Supernatural: Our Little World (11x06)

Yikes. Things are gearing up in kind of a horrifying way. I actually have some big complaints about this episode, but I think the good stuff was good enough to sort of neutralize my criticisms. Let's jump in.

Cons:

In this episode, Cas finally finds Metatron. He gives us an important piece of relevant information: The Darkness is God's sister. But other than that, all the scenes with Metatron and Cas seemed to be just an excuse for a violent fight sequence, and a way to retread the same questions that we've already heard about Cas' place in the world. As Cas was bloodying Metatron to a pulp, Metatron kept going on about how Cas was everybody's puppet, and wasn't he tired of being used by his enemies and his friends? All of these points are totally important... but also totally obvious and rehashed. I guess what I'm saying is that Metatron's purpose in this episode could have been squished down to just a few seconds while he dropped his important plotty information.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Chaos Theory (3x07)

This was, no surprise, another great episode. I had a few things that I was a bit iffy about, but for the most part things are still going strong.

Cons:

Things come to a head in this episode, as Lincoln contacts Mack and tells S.H.I.E.L.D. what he knows about Lash - he's a S.H.I.E.L.D. employee. From there, they quickly put together that Lash is Andrew. By the end of the episode, he's been neutralized with ATCU's nifty suspended animation goo. All of this felt a little too hasty to me. Lash was a great mystery, and the revelation of his true identity was very impressive as well. For all of that buildup, the fallout of the truth was over so quickly. Obviously Andrew will come back into the story at some point... but why not explore this idea for a few more episodes before fridging him?

Castle: Cool Boys (8x06)

A Beckett-less episode. Strange. Still, this was pretty fun. I'm just going to get straight to it. I apologize for my brevity.

Cons:

Same complaint as always. Beckett and Castle's separation doesn't make any sense, so it's difficult to be emotionally invested.

This episode was so busy focusing on other things that it completely dropped the Ryan and Esposito tension that's been going on. That annoys me - these two were at serious odds over the results of the Sergeant's exam, and now there's no sign of any tension whatsoever.

The Walking Dead: Now (6x05)

This was exactly the episode I was hoping to get. We stuck around in Alexandria, and actually explored the fallout from the first few episodes of the season. And there's lot of fallout to deal with. Not sure how I'm going to remember all the little details of this episode, honestly. Let's jump in.

Cons:

Well... kind of what I just said. I loved that this episode brought us back to Alexandria, but I get a little bit overwhelmed with all of the characters that we're supposed to keep track of. The moment that got the most lost in the shuffle was when Aaron admitted that it was his fault that the Wolves found Alexandria. That could have been a powerful character moment, but it got lost. I liked Aaron in the rest of the episode, though. There were other little things like that. None of them were bad - but it just felt like we didn't have proper time to digest and process all of the development here. And so many characters were barely in the episode, or absent altogether - Michonne, Carol, Gabriel, Morgan, etc.

Once Upon a Time: Nimue (5x07)

This. Is. Awesome. Everything is falling into place excellently. I have a few little nitpicking complaints, but mostly I'm thrilled with the direction this is going. Things have to get worse for our heroes before they can get better, right?

Cons:

The back story about Merlin and Nimue was for the most part excellent, but the entire "shock" of the episode is built on the reveal that Nimue is the first Dark One. It was painfully obvious from the first moment, and so Merlin's constant elusive statements were a bit hokey. It would have been okay for us to know the whole time that Nimue was the Dark One. It wouldn't really have ruined the suspense at all.

Merlin and Emma go on a quest in this episode to get an ember from Prometheus' fire, with which Excalibur and the Dagger can be reunited. That's all well and good, but I never quite understood why the two of them needed to do this on their own. Wouldn't it have been better to have Hook or maybe Mary Margaret and David along? They might have helped Emma remember the goodness within her. Maybe she had to make the choice unfettered by her loved ones, but honestly I think Merlin was taking a rather silly and unnecessary risk.

Doctor Who: The Zygon Inversion (9x08)

So... this double episode has definitely been a weak point in the season thus far. There were a lot of elements that I felt were very successful, but I never felt like things clicked into a coherent and masterful whole. Let's take a look at part two of this Zygon-based adventure.

Cons:

I'll start with the big one. The entire episode hinges on a scene at the very end when Kate (human) and Bonnie (Zygon) face off and contemplate pushing a button that will destroy the ceasefire between humans and Zygons. Kate wants to push the button that will kill all the Zygons, while Bonnie wants to push the button that will force all the Zygons out of hiding, and cause panic and destruction. The Doctor is the only thing stopping them from pushing these buttons - he talks to them, trying to get them to see that war is an endless cycle, and that the only way to get off the crazy rollercoaster is to forgive. The Doctor also draws on his own experience with war to convince these two women not to push the buttons. They both back off, swayed by the Doctor's rhetoric. Bonnie actually realizes that both boxes are empty, and that the whole thing is there to keep the political balance safe.

The Vampire Diaries: Live Through This (7x05)

Ah, yes. Damon and Stefan glorious bromance. This is what I was waiting for. However, my personal preferences don't mean I can ignore some of this episode's flaws, either. Let's take a look!

Cons:

In this episode, Damon and Stefan team up with Valerie to find Julian and stop him from being reunited with Lily. Caroline stays at home and worries about Stefan going off with his first love. This plot thread has just become insulting to Caroline's character. I hate her constant insecurity about Stefan and Valerie. I also find Valerie uninteresting as a character, and the entire concept of their star-crossed past to be silly and overdone.

The Big Bang Theory: The Spock Resonance (9x07)

This episode made me miss Leonard Nimoy again. Seriously, I loved that man and I love Spock so much. In many ways I was hoping for more with this setup, but it also makes sense that they would want to focus on the characters rather than on making a full-episode tribute to a dearly missed man. Let’s dive in.

Cons:

Leonard, Penny, and Raj all felt like distractions in this episode. Raj was there to say a couple of one-liners about Howard and Bernadette’s situation, while Leonard and Penny just sat on the sidelines and reacted to what was going on with Sheldon. In Raj’s case, I almost wish they had left him out entirely. With Leonard and Penny, I wish they could have integrated into the story a little more strongly.

Pros:

Elementary: The Past Is Parent (4x01)

This episode didn’t really feel like a season opener, but it was a solid installment nonetheless. I’m thrilled to have this show back on the air after such a long wait, and I’m excited to see how these new developments play out.

Cons:

Like I said, this didn’t feel like a premiere. It wasn’t… epic enough. It was a fallout episode from last year’s finale, honestly. And while that’s fine in many respects, it was a little off-putting to start the season so slowly.

Also, Bell didn’t have enough screen time. I’m a broken record, I know. Gregson got his scene with Sherlock, and Bell had a brief moment with Joan, but I always want more of these two, Bell in particular. Hopefully we’ll get more of them this season.

Grey's Anatomy: The Me Nobody Knows (12x06)

I think we'll just jump right in with this one. I'm generally pretty happy.

Cons:

The main story this week, which I quite liked, centered on Penny starting work at the hospital. She's on Meredith's service, so awkwardness ensues. I did like this plot thread over all, but there's one significant thing I need to mention... Penny is boring. Grey's Anatomy is amazing at creating nuanced and complex characters. Penny is still new, but in the three episodes she's appeared in, I've gotten the sense of a timid girl in an impossible situation, and nothing else. I don't feel like I know her. That could be an intentional thing, as she's definitely supposed to be an outsider, but at the same time I do hope that she gets more distinct and interesting soon. It's difficult for me to understand Callie's attraction to her as of right now. I'll need to see more.

Supernatural: Thin Lizzie (11x05)

Surprise A-plot episode! No way! In some ways I wish this had just been a standard ghost episode, but in other ways I'm thrilled that we're pushing the main story forward with such alacrity. Let's get started.

Cons:

Not much utilization of the Lizzie Borden idea. I really loved what this episode ended up being about, but I can't help but be slightly disappointed in all we didn't get to see. I think this show might have done some cool things with Lizzie Borden, and all the mystery and horror surrounding that. But we barely got any of it before the Amara plot line swept in and took over. Like I said - I enjoyed the plot line that we did get, but still think I might have liked a Borden-based ghost story as well.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Among Us Hide... (3x06)

Woah! What?! I can't believe I didn't see that coming. I'm feeling a little off my game, to be honest. Usually things like this don't catch me off guard. Was this a really obvious twist and I just totally missed it, or did they do a good job of keeping the truth hidden? Let's get started.

Cons:

Uh... I don't really have anything to complain about! Actually, if I were to lodge a tiny little nitpick, it would be that the Fitz and Simmons stuff could have been taken out of the episode and it wouldn't have hurt the overall flow at all. This show has a lot of plot threads and sometimes I think it's okay to cut one out of the story. Simmons got the whole episode last week - if we hadn't seen her or Fitz this week it would have been okay. I liked seeing them, but it wasn't necessary and might have messed with the pacing of the episode just a tiny bit.

Oh! One other thing. In this episode, Werner Von Strucker gets one moment to shine, as he reveals the big secret of Lash's identity. And then he dies. Von Struckers seem to be dropping like flies, and that's a little lame. That character didn't even get a chance to do anything before he was dispatched.

The Walking Dead: Here's Not Here (6x04)

As an individual episode, this was great. But I do have a complaint. Let's take a look.

Cons:

This season is enormously frustrating because so far it's had zero continuity. Episode One was about Rick and the others trying to get the Walkers away from Alexandria. Episode Two was about the Alexandrians fighting off the Wolves. Episode Three was back to Rick, et. al. And then this episode, Episode Four, was a flashback episode about Morgan. I find it enormously difficult to settle in to the season when there's no consistency. As much as I think this episode was amazing, I found myself resenting all the screen time that Morgan was getting, when I just wanted to know what was going on with Rick and the rest of our group.

Once Upon a Time: The Bear and the Bow (5x06)

This episode had a focus on Merida, Belle, and Rumple. Because of that, I'm actually rather surprised that I liked it as much as I did. It's not like I have a problem with Merida or Belle, but I wouldn't have been surprised if this episode had bored me. But it didn't! I have some complaints, but I'm generally pretty pleased!

Cons:

In Storybrooke, Emma is still on a quest to pull Excalibur from the stone, and she still believes Rumple is the one who should do this. Rumple escapes Merida and runs to Belle, so Emma forces Merida to try and kill Belle so that Rumple will be a hero to defend her. In the end Rumple ends up pulling Excalibur from the stone. Rumple declares that Emma has made a mistake - now Emma has the sword, sure, but she's also made Rumple into a powerful enemy. So... this bothers me. It feels like a bit of a letdown, to have the sword out of the stone so quickly. I wanted more drama and buildup with that! Also, I don't believe for a second that Rumple is suddenly a hero. He did the bare minimum (unintentional pun lol) in defeating Merida, and suddenly he's gained all his confidence? I think this show is more complex than that, and I'm hoping we'll see that it's not as easy as all that. As it stands, I think Rumple got let off rather easy.

Doctor Who: The Zygon Invasion (9x07)

For the most part this episode felt like setup for whatever happens next week, but I still quite enjoyed it. I'm going to be a bit brief, since like I said, this feels like mostly setup.

Cons:

What I just said. There were some pacing issues in this episode such that I didn't feel like we were really keyed into the story until almost the very end. Choppy transitions and no real screen time between Clara and the Doctor made this feel like a long, drawn-out prologue to a good story, but without the good story to follow.

There were also parts of this episode that had me rolling my eyes - namely, how stupid is UNIT? I can't believe this organization actually let a population of volatile aliens disperse among the humans of the Earth with no real safety protocol in place for when something inevitably went wrong. I'm sorry, but there's only so far you should go in your trust and benevolence. I'm all for incorporating the Zygons into Earth, but when you know almost nothing about another species, shouldn't there be more safety protocols in place? Yeesh.

The Vampire Diaries: I Carry Your Heart with Me (7x04)

I didn't like this episode. There was almost nothing about it that drew me in. I feel like we're moving farther and farther away from the key elements I was hoping to get out of this season. Namely, I was looking forward to Damon and Stefan's relationship, but there were other things too. Let's take a look at this episode, and its unfortunately large number of flaws.

Cons:

Stefan and Caroline. I really do like the idea of them together, but this week's plot thread was just too silly. Because Damon hasn't given up Oscar to Lily, the dynamic Heretic lesbian duo of Mary Louise and Nora show up to Whitmore to wreak havoc. They tell Damon and Stefan that they will kill one Whitmore student per hour until Oscar is delivered to them. This causes Stefan and Caroline to think up distractions - namely, a big Halloween party, with costumes included. For a show that does a lot of big dances and events, this was a flimsy excuse at best. Stefan and Caroline making flirty eyes with each other while so many people were in real danger was a little hard to swallow. Of course, the vervaine curse on Caroline's skin means that there's lots of mounting sexual tension. They can't touch until one of the Heretics syphons away the curse. They trick Mary Louis and Nora into doing so, and then immediately fall into bed together. Okay... like, I know that Stefan and Caroline are a thing and we're all happy about it, but do they honestly not care about all the other crap that's going on? What about all the dead folks in Mystic Falls? You'd think Stefan would at least want to confirm that Elena really had been returned to Damon, too. I don't know... to me, these two came across as really selfish in this episode, and that's not something I'd normally associate either one of them with. On top of that, Caroline's stupid insecurities about Stefan's old flame Valerie continue to irk me. That whole plot thread is stupid.

Supernatural: Baby (11x04)

Wow. I've seen the fan and critical reaction of this episode so far, and I should warn you that I'm not going to be saying anything new. This episode was awesome. I don't think I have a single complaint. I'm just... I'm so thrilled.

Cons:

Ummmm.... let me wrack my brain for a flaw. The one and only slightly imperfect thing that I can think of is that sometimes the humor and the violence of the episode didn't balance very well. Like they were mostly going for a comedic take on the monsters, what with Dean's silly names for them and the awkward fight sequences inside the car. But then you have frankly a quite brutal beheading with the door of the impala... it made me cringe, and I wasn't sure if that was the reaction they should have been going for. But seriously, this is a nitpick. How can I not love this episode?

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: 4,722 Hours (3x05)

I was so excited for this episode. To my knowledge, this is the first bottle episode that Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has ever done, and it was with a focus on Jemma Simmons, arguably the most underutilized main character on the show. I was so, so excited. And for the most part, the execution of this episode was excellent. But... I'm seriously, seriously annoyed with a few things. Let's take a look.

Cons:

The plot is very basic - we finally get to see what Jemma was up to on the alien planet. She records her experiences on her unrealistically not-dead cellphone, and eventually she meets Will Daniels, an astronaut from NASA who has been trapped on the planet for fourteen years. Jemma figures out when the portal will open again, but unfortunately they miss their chance. Jemma gives up hope, and falls in love with Will, both of them thinking they will stay there forever. At the end of the episode, Fitz shows up. Jemma manages to reach him, but Will stays back to fend off the mysterious and unseen force that's been plaguing them the whole time - the same force that caused Will's fellow NASA members to die. Fitz, upon hearing about Will, decides to help Jemma get him back. That's the plot.

The Big Bang Theory: The Helium Insufficiency (9x06)

The premise of one of these subplots had disaster written all over it, but they seem to have dodged a bullet. Let's take a look.

Cons:

The subplot this week concerned Amy's dating life. It turns out that Stuart has gotten a couple of dates on a dating app (clearly meant to be Tinder, although they don't say it). Penny and Bernadette think it would be a good idea to set Amy up on the app as well. They all sit around and examine the different men, making fun of them and giving Amy advice. However, we then learn that Amy has already been on a couple of dates with men. She's putting herself out there. Her friends are shocked that they haven't been told. I was worried when this plot thread started that there were going to be some really icky jokes concerning dating culture and Amy's sex life. For the most part, they managed to avoid veering in to offensive territory, but they replaced it with a lackluster plot thread. It wasn't completely awful, but it didn't really have any jokes that hit the mark, and, like almost always, I felt that there were some missed opportunities.

Once Upon a Time: Dreamcatcher (5x05)

Yikes, Emma. You're breaking my heart here. Which is, I guess, the whole point. Let's just dive right in.

Cons:

The main plot in Camelot this week was hinged on the fact that Henry has a crush on this girl Violet. However, once he tries to court her, she reveals that she just wants to be friends. Okay, that's all fine. This, unsurprisingly, upsets Henry. Apparently it upsets him enough to break his heart, and this is what causes me some doubt. Regina, quite selfishly, uses the tear of his heartbreak to help break Merlin out of his tree prison. I guess I'm just thinking that Henry's heart being broken by a gentle rebuke from a young girl he barely knows is a little... silly. Emma actually refers to this as Henry's "first love." Yeesh.

The Walking Dead: Thank You (6x03)

It's ironic that this episode is called "Thank You," because after watching it my reaction is "no thank you, take it back and bring something else instead, I refuse to accept what I just witnessed." I'm devastated. But I'm also a tad annoyed. Let's take a look.

Cons:

So... Glenn is dead. Now, this isn't a con in and of itself... I understand that people die on this show, and that just because something rips my heart out doesn't make it bad television. But here's the thing: they keep showing their cards. I suspected Glenn as a goner when he was only lightly present in the first episode this season, and then suspected it even stronger when he kept being all heroic, and then knew it for sure when he talked to Rick over the walkie talkie and called him "jackass," as an obvious call-back to Glenn's very first moment on the show. It was so obvious to me that they were going to kill Glenn that I started to wonder if maybe it was a reverse-psychology thing, and there was going to be a fake-out and somebody else would die. But no. It was Glenn. The buildup was so blatant that when it happened, I was half horrified and sad, and half angry that I'd been able to predict this so readily.

Doctor Who: The Woman Who Lived (9x06)

What a strange episode. But... I think I liked it, honestly. If you read my review last week you'll know that I was mighty annoyed about the introduction of yet another special mystery girl. However, due to  Maisie Williams' performance and an actually nuanced script, I'm eating my words. For once, it seems this idea was executed correctly.

Cons:

The action-y alien aspect of this episode was almost presented as a side-note, and it felt like a last minute tacked on scene. Essentially, Maisie Williams' character, going by the name "Me" for most of the episode, has an ally named Leandro, a lion-esque alien man who wants to open a portal to his world. Me is convinced that she will get to travel the galaxies, and she's all for the plan. Turns out, Leandro was tricking her, and his people start to invade. The whole thing was really only a set up so that we could come to the moment that Me, aka Ashildr, could realize that she still cares about the lives of humans. This could have been done in a simpler way, without the added element of a quick invasion.

The Vampire Diaries: Age of Innocence (7x03)

Okay, guys. I've got some bones to pick with this episode. I must be honest. It's painful to watch a show and understand exactly what they're trying to do, but watch them miss the mark so horribly.

Cons:

Valerie and Stefan's backstory took up a lot of the time this week, and it is a doozy. Apparently Lily wanted to send her "family" to check on Stefan and Damon and make sure they were okay before she turned her back on them for good. Damon got Oscar, which we'll get to later. Valerie, still only a witch and not a vampire, meets Stefan and falls for him. They have sex, she gets pregnant. Then, Lily's beau, a man named Julian, beats Valerie within an inch of her life and causes her to miscarry the child. Lily feeds Valerie her blood, Valerie tries to commit suicide, and consequently wakes up as the very first Heretic. Yikes. Nothing about this story was compelling. I think the goal was to recapture the days of star-crossed romance and adorable human!Stefan flashbacks, but we've already got the best we're going to get out of that idea, and her name was Katherine Pierce, and we should be RESPECTING THE DEAD, not introducing bland characters like Valerie to try and recreate something that was pretty close to perfect the first time around.

Grey's Anatomy: Guess Who's Coming to Dinner (12x05)

Amazing episode. Sort of different from what we've been seeing so far this season. I liked the fact that it was totally unrelated to the hospital. Most of the episode took place in Meredith's house, in fact. Let's take a look at the disastrous dinner party from Hell!

Cons:

There was one subplot that didn't work for me. Jo and Stephanie are at odds, as Jo now realizes that Stephanie was telling the truth about her childhood sickness. Jo tries to apologize, and eventually Stephanie agrees to listen to her. They seem to patch things up, but then Jo says she understands Stephanie better now, and feels a sense of closeness because of their shared hardships (Jo was poor, Steph was sick). Stephanie accuses Jo of being jealous, of needing to find an excuse as to why Stephanie is better than Jo at their job. Stephanie leaves, disgusted with Jo. I didn't really understand the direction this plot thread took. I liked it right up until the end. I wish there could have been a more complex handling of events. I was hoping that their "repaired" friendship would show signs of strain, but I was baffled by Stephanie's anger. It didn't really work for me in terms of the narrative.

Modern Family: The Verdict (7x05)

Lots of different plot threads here - pretty much every character had something to do. I'm not sure I was  a fan of a few of the plot threads, but others were pretty cute. Let's get started.

Cons:

Claire gets to be boss for the day, since Jay is out of the office. She brings Haley and Alex with her for "bring your daughter to work day." Predictably, her day is awful. Nobody at the office wants to have her as their boss. They all insist that they wait for Jay. Things come to a head when Claire tries to make a farewell speech to a retiring employee and inadvertently prepares the speech about the wrong person. This plot thread was... uninspired. It had a lot of slapstick humor with Claire getting more and more banged up throughout the day. I rarely enjoy slapstick. Then there's Haley and Alex, who had nothing to do the whole time but cringe and look worried about Claire's antics. I think the point of this plot thread was that Claire wanted to impress her daughters, and then later they tell her that she already impresses them all the time. This was sort of a shoe-horned lesson that didn't hit the mark for me. Everything about this plot thread was predictable, too. It was no surprise that Claire's day kept getting worse and worse, and there were no twists to keep me on my toes.

Supernatural: The Bad Seed (11x03)

The number one thing I like about this season so far is that they're pushing the story forward. Quickly. I know we'll have some C-plot episodes to contend with in the coming weeks, but these first three episodes have done a lot more than simply establish a villain. They've already set up all our major players in interesting ways. We'll be adding Metatron to the mix soon, and then the real fun (read: nightmare) can begin. Let's take a look at this week's adventure!

Cons:

The script this week had some really clunky moments. The most awkward one was when Sam and Dean encounter a witch who had recently been with Rowena. They ask her to scry, and she pretends not to know what that is. Sam angrily says that she knows exactly what it is, and then angrily explains it to her anyway, obviously as a way to let the audience know what scrying is. There were also moments in the bunker when Sam told Dean that they were trying to find Metatron and Rowena. Obviously Sam was telling the audience, but there was no reason to say it out loud like this in-story, since Dean obviously already knew what they were doing. Very clunky.

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Devils You Know (3x04)

Wow! Things are getting mighty intense... I love this show. Honestly, it's just so incredibly solid and amazing. Let's get started.

Cons:

The only con I can think of is that all of the stories were so excellent that it might have been nice to drag them out a little more. We've got all this stuff with Lash and Daisy and the ACTU, and then there's a bunch of stuff with Hunter, May, and Ward. Each one of these plot threads could have filled out an entire episode, with the Fitz, Simmons, and Bobbi stuff as a subplot. Doing all three stories in one episode did mean that there wasn't a lot of breathing room. But honestly, if they can keep delivering action-packed and interesting episodes, I'm okay with a little bit of crowding.

The Big Bang Theory: The Perspiration Implementation (9x05)

This one was fine. I was annoyed at some things, of course, but amused by others. As always, I felt there were missed opportunities. Let's take a quick look.

Cons:

The main plot seemed to revolve around the following well-thought-out premise: "lol nerds don't exercise!" That's super annoying. This show can be so insulting to nerd culture, even as it claims to be celebrating it. Aggravating, to say the least. I wasn't at all amused by the list of sports that they couldn't participate in because they were such big nerds. Also, as a big lover of the fitbit myself, I thought Howard's silly trick of making it look like he was moving around was rather stupid. I'm sure he would have gotten thousands of steps just from walking around at work!

Stuart had the beginnings of a real plot thread here, but it was sort of abandoned. He asks the girls why he can't attract more girl customers to his comic book shop. They talk about how creepy he is, and Stuart admits that he's bad at being comfortable around girls. This could have been a chance to explore Stuart's character a bit more, but as per usual they didn't stick the landing. I really wish this show had better follow-through.

Castle: The Nose (8x05)

This season of Castle has been enormously frustrating thus far. Each of these episodes seems to have moments and ideas that prove it still knows how to be a good product. But the whole thing is dragged down by a completely nonsensical and forced conflict between Castle and Beckett! This episode had quite a few problems, actually. There were a few great elements, though. It's confusing!

Cons:

Beckett and Castle's separation still makes no sense. I won't rant about this too much, I swear. Suffice it to say, all of the longing glances, and the sniffing of each other's clothes... it would be touching, if I thought there was any good reason for them to be separated in the first place. I'm not buying the whole wistful glances thing. Why the heck aren't you two just together, then, if you both so clearly love each other? Stupid.

Ryan and Esposito's story dovetailed into outright ridiculousness this week. We find out that Esposito passed his Sergeant's exam, but that Ryan did not. That part is fine - I actually find it interesting. But then later, while they're trying to track down a suspect, Ryan accidentally shoots Espo in the ass. This is played entirely for laughs, as the two continue to bicker about it. Eventually, Ryan even bends over and tells Espo to shoot him in the ass to make up for it. What the heck? This is so... weird! The slapstick humor thing is okay occasionally, but shouldn't this be a bit of a bigger deal? I would expect Ryan shooting Espo to be a cause for some serious angst and drama, not a couple of quick lackluster laughs. And shouldn't Ryan get into trouble? This just really bothered me.

The Walking Dead: JSS (6x02)

Well. All I can say right now is... that wasn't what I was expecting. Last week, we were left with a cliffhanger, as a large horde of Walkers were heading toward Alexandria. And this week, we didn't pick up where we left off. Instead, we saw what's been going on at Alexandria, and... yikes! Let's jump right in.

Cons:

A lot of stuff was going on. Like, a lot. We didn't even check in with Rick, Glenn, Daryl, and everybody else outside of the community, and yet there were still too many characters to keep track of. Some characters got little tiny snippets that seemed like they were going to turn into stories, but there wasn't room. Maggie, for example, was trying to help Deanna heal from the death of her husband. That got interrupted. Father Gabriel is still trying to make amends, but doesn't seem to be getting very far. I have no problem with these plot threads, but they didn't have room to breathe in this episode.

Once Upon a Time: The Broken Kingdom (5x04)

This episode was sort of underwhelming, but in a good way. I don't have a lot to really complain about, but it didn't keep me as excited and pumped as the first three episodes of the season did. Still, I'm looking forward to what comes next.

Cons:

Magic sand. In this episode, we see flashbacks of Camelot from when Arthur first became king. He is obsessed with finding the Dagger of the Dark One so he can fix Excalibur and be worthy of the Kingdom. Guinevere is lonely and scared, since Arthur never pays attention to her. She and Lancelot go to find the Dagger. Rumplestiltskin won't let them take the Dagger, but he does give them a vial of magic sand that can "fix anything." Guinevere plans on using it to "fix" Excalibur, so that Arthur will think his task is complete. But when Arthur figures this out, he pours the sand on Guinevere instead, and that "fixes" her doubts about him, and turns her into a loyal and supportive wife. Later, the king and queen use the magic sand to "fix" Camelot so that the kingdom is happy, and then years later, they "fix" Mary Margaret and David when they discover Arthur's treachery.

Doctor Who: The Girl Who Died (9x05)

I really liked this episode. It was great. But... God, I don't know. Am I being too picky? Too sensitive? There were still some things I really would have liked to see differently.

Cons:

In this episode, the Doctor and Clara end up with a village of Vikings. All of their warriors are kidnapped by aliens, and the remaining villagers must defeat these aliens with the odds stacked against them. How do they manage this? Well, the Doctor comes up with a brilliant plan, of course! I don't mind that the Doctor saves them, but it bothered me that Clara literally sat back and waited for him to come up with the answer. Her only contribution was to remind the Doctor that he needed to come up with a brilliant solution. For that matter, Clara is the damsel in distress twice in this episode. The first time, the Doctor saves her as she floats around in outer space. This is clearly the tale-end of an unseen adventure. Clara was totally helpless. Then later, Clara and Arya Stark (uhh... I mean Ashildr) get kidnapped, and they only survive because Ashildr challenges the aliens to a battle. I guess I just really miss the companions having a bigger role in saving the day.