The Walking Dead: The Rotten Core (11x14)

A decent installment in many ways, but I still can't help but feel that so much of this season has been treading water. We know shit is going to come to a head with the Commonwealth, we know these are bad people at this point, so... I don't know. Sometimes I wonder what we're even doing here.

Cons:

I think Jeffrey Dean Morgan is a good actor. I find his performance moving, as long as I don't think for longer than a couple of seconds about the truth of what he did. Apparently he feels very guilty. Apparently he's a new man now. He's got a wife, which is just wild to think about. But he didn't just kill Glenn and Abraham and countless others. He did it with glee. I know he's got a tragic backstory, but I can't ignore the truth of that.

Hornsby and Sebastian both have a similar problem as villains in that they seem kind of cartoonish? Like, wouldn't they be even a little self-aware about how their words and behaviors might be received? Willing to sacrifice countless lives to get to a stash of money... that's some Disney villain shit. I wish their justifications felt a little more thought out, or they wrestled with some discomfort, or maybe they are completely immortal and don't even try to justify it... I'm not sure what exactly I wish was different, just that things weren't so ridiculously clear-cut in terms of who we're supposed to hate. The vast majority of citizens of the Commonwealth seem happy and secure. Is the real evil here that at any point that security might be stolen from you? If so, let's get into it from that angle!

Outlander: Hour of the Wolf (6x04)

Well, an Ian-centric episode was never going to be the most compelling to me. Also on the preview of the next episode I saw John Grey, and that was the most exciting part of my whole viewing experience lol. Let's take a look!

Cons:

So, Ian just doesn't really do much for me as a character. In the books, I like him when he's a teenager and lose interest when he joins the Mohawk, and all the stuff that comes after... it's not that I think any of this material was bad, per se, but my own personal level of engagement was low. The flashbacks of Ian and Emily felt very... one-note. I thought the actress portraying Ian's wife did a good job with what she had, but she didn't really have much, did she? I didn't get a sense of who she was as a person. Yes, clearly she and Ian loved each other, but what else? The tragedy didn't hit as hard as it might have, if I'd understood Emily, and also Ian's other friends there, the life he'd truly been able to build for himself in his new community.

The way they're doing the ether plot this season really confuses me. I just remember in the book that Claire was SO careful and SO meticulous at all times with it, and in the show we have her self medicating, and also show her practicing on Josiah and Lizzie just to give Malva some practice? Maybe I'm misremembering things, but I don't think that was in the book.

Grey's Anatomy: Put the Squeeze on Me (18x13)

Okay, I'm going to try and rapid-fire this one. Famous last words.

Cons:

Teddy and Owen. Do I really need to say more? I guess I'm... glad... that they've talked through their issues so hopefully we can put this behind us? But I don't know, it just feels like a waste of time whenever I have to watch their drama play out on screen. I'm also sad that Megan and Farouk seem to be gone, I was hoping they'd stick around and have more to do.

I really love Bailey and Ben's relationship, so I get a little resentful when I see them referencing and continuing on from plot beats that are happening on Station 19. I wish we had more of that play out during the show I'm watching, and not the show I refuse to start.

Meredith is now considering moving for this new job opportunity, and Nick is... there, and ostensibly going to be a factor in that decision, but I'm just borrrrredd by him and nothing that happens can change that! Sorry!

The Walking Dead: Warlords (11x13)

Eh.... I mean... okay, I guess.

Cons:

Does anyone else just get very tired whenever we meet a new group of people, get a new weirdo or warlord or whatever, who has to do the whole macho routine and be intimidating in some new way we haven't seen before? Because we have seen it before. Come on. There's this showdown between Aaron, Gabriel, and some people of the Commonwealth, with this new community they want to assist, and the whole time the tense scene was going on, I was sitting there trying not to yawn. There's nothing new under the sun.

I found the way this episode was structured, with flashbacks and an out of order series of scenes, to be largely unnecessary. It was clearly done that way because Toby Carlson needed to be a twist surprise assassin. But honestly, the tension of us, the audience, knowing what he was up to while Aaron and Gabriel did not, would have worked far better from my perspective. It just felt convoluted for the sake of being convoluted, almost as if they thought making it confusing would trick us into thinking it was good as a matter of course.

Outlander: Temperance (6x03)

Oh man... some of my very favorite stuff from the books, although of course it's hard to watch for obvious reasons!

Cons:

I was really vibing with the energy of last week's episode, and this week had a lot of stand-out scenes I liked, but also had some of those clunky moments I notice with the show sometimes, were it kind of feels like everyone is play-acting and they don't feel like real people to me. Crowd scenes where Brianna and Marsali awkwardly exposition at us about Mrs. Bug watching the kids, or Roger filling Bree in on the situation with Lizzie and the twins. The scene with Amy and Roger, with the bullfrog in the pitcher of milk - I get why that scene is there, for the sake of stuff that will happen later, but on its own it felt a bit awkward.

Grey's Anatomy: The Makings of You (18x12)

Huh. I feel distinctly torn about this episode.

Cons:

I like that we're actually doing some stuff with the kids, it's fun to see Zola have a personality and interests of their own, but also... oof... the kids' acting in this show is... not the greatest. It's a little distracting to see Maggie and Winston playing off of the performances from the little ones playing Bailey and Ellis, and even Zola.

Nick. Okay, so in this episode, we meet Nick's niece Charlotte, and we learn that he can have a bit of a temper sometimes, and that he's overprotective of his niece. Real, concrete information about this guy. A personality. I wish I could bring myself to care more. I will give them credit and say this is the most that a storyline with Nick has ever made me want to pay attention, and that's because I love Meredith and I want her to be safe and happy. I just can't quite click with this generic nobody, no matter how hard they try and make me.

The Walking Dead: The Lucky Ones (11x12)

Eh, this episode didn't compel me the way the last couple episodes have. I guess the novelty of the Commonwealth is starting to wear off a bit.

Cons:

The guy who wants to bring in the additional communities for his own personal clout is kind of boring to me? I guess I don't quite get his whole deal, and Pamela is also feeling a bit one-note to me. I get that it's going to be an issue of control, they're going to have to figure out a balance where the benefits of the Commonwealth are not worth the totalitarianism. Like, we all agree totalitarian regimes are bad, but zombie apocalypses are also bad, right? I don't know, it just seems like all this stuff is going to be dragged way out past the point of interest, where I want to get to the aftermath, so we can see what the world will truly look like moving forward for these characters. This is the final season, let's get a move on, here!

Pros:

I did like Eugene and Max's scenes. I want to believe there will be no more double-crossing, that this time it's really real, and Eugene will get to have that happiness. I loved his apology, where he talked about his difficulty with social cues and how believing in the imposter was part of so badly wanting to have that love in his life. These two are both very awkward and yet sweet, and I find myself genuinely rooting for their love! And I also thought Eugene's struggle before getting to that point where he could talk to Max was interesting to watch. He and Rosita having a moment together was sweet; at this point they are some of the longest lasting characters on the show and their friendship was a bizarre yet powerful one to watch develop over the years.

Outlander: Allegiance (6x02)

This was a good one, lots of stuff from the books that I remember with a certain degree of fondness/dread... let's dive in!

Cons:

Still not sold on the whole ether plot thread here... I'm trying not to be a grump just because it's different from the books; that's not really my beef with it. It honestly just seems out of character for Claire in a way I worry they won't integrate well moving forward.

Also... okay... so this is lifted straight from the books, but the scene where the Cherokee women come into Jamie's bed uninvited has always felt a little odd to me. It's a pervasive problem with this whole story, that so many of the characters experience sexual assault or rape in their life, and yet there is also this very irreverent and joking way that such things are often looked at. I'm not saying Jamie is obligated to feel violated by what happens to him in this scene, but the fact that it's played entirely for laughs is sort of odd, is it not?

Grey's Anatomy: Legacy (18x11)

Koracick, my love!

Cons:

Why are they giving Nick his own story-line? You can't trick me into caring about this man, Grey's. You can't do it. This episode brought back Tom Koracick, one of the weirdly greatest characters ever written for this show, and you expect me to pay attention to Nick's boring shit? And it doesn't help that the story seems kind of... basic ground for Grey's Anatomy? It's a simple story about an organ transplant, where we have to grieve for the young man who died and celebrate the young man who gets another chance at life. I was waiting for some twist that would make it stand out from other similar plot elements over the years, but there really wasn't anything. It honestly feels like that plot thread was just there to try and make Nick more sympathetic, give the audience something to connect to. The trouble is, Nick being a nice guy is literally the only thing I know about him, and now I've learned nothing new.

And then the end of the episode is Meredith going to celebrate her success with him, which is honestly the last thing I care about seeing. It kills me, because seeing Meredith in a stable, simple relationship with a good guy is something I really want for her, but Nick just gives me nothing to connect to!

The Walking Dead: Rogue Element (11x11)

Oh damn, poor Eugene!

Cons:

I guess I want a bit more information from the leaders of this community... so far we just get "they seem nice but they're all kind of creepy" and it's about time to learn a bit more. Do any of them have qualms about what they're doing? I guess this isn't so much a con as something I hope they explore a bit more later on.

I see that most clearly in Carol's little detour this week, with Hornsby, where we learn that the Commonwealth does deals with other less idealized communities. Specifically, they get their opium supply for the hospital from one such group. This could be interesting color and certainly raises some questions, but mostly it just had me scratching my head as to why Carol would be given this tour. If this is an Authoritarian community, why do the newcomers get to spend so much time poking around in their business? Does Carol have a job, or what?

Outlander: Echoes (6x01)

Well, we're back! Since the last time this show was on, I finished my re-read of the Outlander books, including the new ninth book that just came out in November. So I've got a lot of Outlander overflowing in my brain... I'll try and keep it all straight!

Cons:

So, one big thing they're adding here is that Claire is dosing herself with ether as a way of coping with her trauma from her kidnapping/rape last season. I suppose I should reserve judgment, maybe I won't hate this change moving forward... but it immediately set my teeth on edge for a couple of reasons. One, this is a big change to the psychological profile of our lead character, and if they're going to do this, I want them to go all the way with it, meaning the ramifications from Claire drugging herself would need to be big and really rework a lot of what's happening moving forward. I'm not sure I trust them to do that well. The other thing is... in the books, Claire's experiments with ether are extremely dangerous and Claire is beyond meticulous in the creation and testing of ether. It just seems so out of character for her to do something so careless, unsupervised. Again, if this is meant to show how badly her trauma has affected her, fine, but they need to see this through.

A meaner complaint, and one they can't really correct for at this point, is the actor who plays Brianna. I'm sorry, but I've never been able to get fully on board with her performance. Every time she's in a scene with anyone, I'm suddenly painfully aware that this is all fake, that everyone's dressed up in their little outfits on a set with cameras pointing at them. There's this oppressive sense of the play-acting of it all. I don't see Brianna in front of me, I see someone awkwardly saying lines written for her to say. It honestly impacts every scene she's in.

Grey's Anatomy: Living in a House Divided (18x10)

I feel so much unreasonable anger over being forced to watch parts of this show I don't care about lol. This is a me problem.

Cons:

Meredith's boyfriend Nick... okay I caved and payed attention to his name finally... he's just So Boring. They're really playing this up as this romance that we're supposed to feel connected to/happy with... we see him meeting Amelia and Maggie for the first time, and they're all interested in Meredith's new relationship, and Nick is confessing deep feeling for Meredith and wanting them to stay with each other more. And the whole time I'm just yawning at the screen. Especially aggravating because we saw Hayes for like two seconds this episode, and his moment where he talks about how much Meredith meant to him in handling his grief over his wife was more electric and powerful than anything Nick has ever provided. Sorry, dude, but you're boring.

I guess having relationship drama with Teddy and Owen that's about medical stuff is more interesting than the usual roundabout they're always on, but since I still dislike both of these characters quite a lot, I'm not really enthused about having to follow this plot thread. Teddy spends the episode desperately trying to figure out what Owen is up to, what he confessed to Hayes in the car. She talks to Owen, to Hayes, to Megan about it, and finally sees one of Owen's patients' wives in the room with him, and follows her out to Owen's car to confront her about what she's just taken from there. So now we're at the point of no return, Teddy about to discover what's happening... and again, I'm just not at all here for it. Boring and annoying all at once.