The Big Bang Theory: The Deception Verification (7x02)

Announcement: Due to my extremely busy schedule and the absurd amount of television I will be blogging about, most of my posts will dramatically decrease in length. If an episode warrants special attention, I'll be sure to write more.

While not as strong as the premiere, this episode still had some good stuff going on. Leonard comes back early from his trip, but in an effort to spend a few days with Penny alone, he hides in her apartment and doesn't tell Sheldon that he's home. Sheldon suspects that Penny is being unfaithful to Leonard when he notices strange signs of a guest in her apartment. However, when he tries to catch her in the act, he sees Leonard.

This causes some drama in the Leonard and Sheldon friendship, and Sheldon feels betrayed by Leonard's lie. This entire betrayal thing is especially effective because it comes right after a scene with Sheldon and Stuart in the Comic Book store, where Sheldon is looking for a welcome home gift for Leonard.

The Big Bang Theory: The Hofstadter Insufficiency (7x01)

Announcement: Due to my extremely busy schedule and the absurd amount of television I will be blogging about, most of my posts will dramatically decrease in length. If an episode warrants special attention, I'll be sure to write more.

Wow. This was actually a fantastic opening episode. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

Leonard is still at sea, and after Sheldon has a nightmare about him getting eaten by a kraken, he spends the night at Penny's house. The two of them spend time together and after calling Leonard and discovering that he's at a party, Penny is upset that Leonard doesn't seem to be missing her. Sheldon and Penny start telling secrets to each other that nobody else knows. Penny talks about a cheap horror film she once did, and Sheldon says that he saw that. Howard found it right after meeting her. Sheldon then reveals his big secret: he is still upset over YouTube changing their rating system from stars to thumbs up/thumbs down. Initially, Penny scoffs and say that's ridiculous, and then...

Parenthood: It Has to be Now (5x01)

Announcement: Due to my extremely busy schedule and the absurd amount of television I will be blogging about, most of my posts will dramatically decrease in length. If an episode warrants special attention, I'll be sure to write more.

We're back! I love Parenthood. It's one of the most real dramas out there. Even when things get a bit melodramatic at moments, it still manages to make me feel connected to these characters. So. Let's take a look at this one! We're starting several months after the events at the end of Season Four.

Kristina is cancer free! She wants to seize the day, and the opportunity comes when a visit from a former employer makes her realize she wants to get back in to politics. At first, she was thinking about running a campaign, but then she decides she's going to run for mayor. This is one of the sillier ideas this show has come up with, but I'm willing to see how it plays out. Realistically, I'd love it if she did terribly. There's no way she would be able to garner much of a following.

Modern Family: First Days (5x02)

Announcement: Due to my extremely busy schedule and the absurd amount of television I will be blogging about, most of my posts will dramatically decrease in length. If an episode warrants special attention, I'll be sure to write more.

It's an episode full of first days as Luke and Manny start high school and Claire starts her new job working for her father.

Phil and Gloria are both upset because their children pulled away from them as they were starting their first day of school. They try to go out for coffee, but end up stumbling in on a commercial set. The director invites them to be extras, but they continuously cause disruptions, ranging from being way too animated to crying about their children. In the end, however, Luke follows some of his father's "first day of school advice" and Phil feels happy to know his son still needs him.

Modern Family: Suddenly, Last Summer (5x01)

Announcement: Due to my extremely busy schedule and the absurd amount of television I will be blogging about, most of my posts will dramatically decrease in length. If an episode warrants special attention, I'll be sure to write more.

In this premiere episode of Modern Family, we flash back to June. Gay marriage has just become legal, and Mitch and Cam are both excited. They both decide to propose to one another. Claire is helping Mitch, while Jay and Gloria are helping Cam. Things keep going wrong as they try to avoid each other's proposals so they can do it themselves. Claire, Phil, Gloria, and Jay are all at Cam and Mitch's house trying to set up a surprise for the engagement, but the couple gets stuck on the side of the road due to a blown tire. When they both get down on one knee to put on the spare tire, they notice the position they are in and both say "yes."

Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.: Pilot (1x01)

Alright! This is the only new show I'm starting this season, because I've got enough to concern myself with already. If there's one thing I've learned from the pilot of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., it's that I'm gonna get really sick of writing that title, what with all the capital letters and periods.

Okay, but in all seriousness. What do I think of this pilot? It was good! Was it fantastic? Mind blowing? Joss Whedon's finest work? No. But pilots are very rarely the best example of what a show has to offer. I have every hope that this new project can go from being a decently good time to being absolutely fantastic. I'm already seeing the seeds of obsession start to grow among the Whedon fanatics out there. (I might... perhaps... be among said fanatics, which might be why I'm watching the show in the first place...)

As is often the case with new shows, my first concern is characterization. Do I like these characters? Do I think they have good chemistry together? I'm going to go through our six main characters and discuss what I like/dislike about each of them. Then, I'll go ahead and give a brief plot summary. Here we go!

Castle: Valkyrie (6x01)

Castle is back! And I really loved this opening episode. It was an unusually strong example of a show that has been going downhill over the last season or so.

We start off with Beckett accepting Castle's proposal. I really liked the way they did this - Beckett totally freaks out because she thought she was being dumped, and then she gets all excited about the proposal. But then she doesn't say yes right away, because she wants to tell Castle that she got the job in DC, and she's taking it. After much floundering, the two officially become engaged.

We cut to two months later. Beckett is in DC, and Castle is at home. Beckett is working on a case with her new partner - and hey, it's Dr. Cuddy from House! I mean... it's Lisa Edelstein. Her character's name is Rachel McCord. Anyway, they're working on a case, and Castle comes out to DC to surprise Beckett. They haven't seen each other in quite some time, and they are very... enthusiastic about reuniting.

The next morning, Beckett has to go work on a case. She can't tell Castle anything about it, of course, but he takes a peak at a piece of paper that Beckett accidentally left behind. He begins investigating the case, which involves a power outage and a robbery of a high security location. When Beckett and McCord catch him at a golf course talking to potential witnesses, things go wrong. Beckett could get in serious trouble because of Castle's meddling. McCord, however, who remembers a slip up she had when she first started, chooses to let Beckett off the hook.

How I Met Your Mother: Coming Back (9x02)

Onto episode two! I know I said the last review would be short, but I actually mean it this time. Okay, we've got parallel stories going on, as always, but now most of the group is together at Farhampton.

Ted and Lily try to check into the hotel, and the man behind the desk is very surprised to hear that Ted is there alone. He continuously treats Ted with pity throughout the episode, telling him to hang in there, that things will get better. This annoys Ted to no end. However, Lily is in a similar boat: she gets a call from Marshall that he is delayed, and might not be able to make it back to New York. She decides that if she is going to make it through the weekend alone, she is going to need to keep the drinks flowing. She pays a bartender to always put a drink in her hand, which begins a funny recurring joke of the episode, wherein Lily finishes a drink, and another one is immediately put into her hand, at which point she says "thank you, Linus."

Barney's brother James is there, and Barney tells the story of the Stinson curse, and how all of the men of the family have been too horny for monogamy. But since James had broken the curse, Barney is free to marry Robin! It turns out there's a problem: James and Tom are getting divorced because James cheated on him.

How I Met Your Mother: The Locket (9x01)

So, these first two episodes of How I Met Your Mother played back to back, almost as one continuous episode, but they have different titles and different serial numbers so I'm going to talk about them separately. However, this review and the following one will probably be quite short.

We're back for our final season! I've got to say, this show has been a strong one over the years, but it's definitely time for it to wrap up. However, I'm glad to say that this final season started off pretty strong with its premiere. There were three different story lines going on at once, as all our main characters set off to Farhampton for the wedding. Each one had its merits, but there was one that particularly impressed me.

Okay, so first off there's Barney and Robin. Even though their wedding is really going to be the subject of a lot of the season, I found their plot line to be the weakest. It wasn't awful, but there wasn't a lot going on, either. The two of them are in the back of a car (driven by Ranjit!) headed to Farhampton. They start talking about all the crazy people in both of their families, and how inevitably one of them will ruin the wedding. Then, they get to talking about a crazy cousin Mitch... and they realize that they have the same cousin. Thoroughly disgusted, they frantically call relatives to try and figure out how exactly they are related. In the end, it turns out Mitch was adopted, and they are both hugely relieved. Barney then has a cheesy line about how since he has Robin now, he doesn't have to say "wait for it" anymore.

Breaking Bad: Granite State (5x15)

Last time, I was worried that nothing would be able to top the majesty that was the last episode. In some ways, I was right to be worried, because this episode was not as good as the last one. But it wasn't bad. It was fantastic. While last week was a heart-stopping climax of sorts, this episode dealt superbly well with the fallout, and still had a few tricks up its sleeves. So, no, this episode doesn't get a perfect score like the last one did, but it still gets high marks in my book. Let's take a closer look:

Saul has decided to start a new life. His contact puts him in a room with Walt while he tries to figure out where they're both going to start over. Walt, it seems, is not ready to give up. He demands Saul's help in finding hit men to take out Jack and his crew. Saul refuses, and tells Walt that if he doesn't go back and face the music, the DEA is going to be merciless in going after Skyler. Walt tries to maintain his bad ass image in front of Saul, but a coughing fit stops him short. Saul tells Walt that it's over. It was a powerful moment from his character. I've always found Saul to be more complex than it might first appear - he's a comic relief sort of guy, but he's also the worst kind of coward, the kind who condones murder as long as it's not his own. I'm fairly certain we've now seen the last of him, and I think this quiet yet tense confrontation with Walt was the right way for him to bow out.

Walt gets brought by Ed (the extractor) to New Hampshire, to a cabin in the middle of the woods, totally secluded. He is cut off entirely from the world except for the moments when Ed comes to bring him supplies. He is slowly dying, while all the while his big barrel of money just sits there, totally useless. Despite all the evil Walt has done, it was hard to watch him suffer like this. He became so totally lonely that he was willing to pay Ed thousands of dollars just to stay with him a bit longer.

The Legend of Korra: Civil Wars, Part 1 (2x03)

Excellent. This is by far the best episode of The Legend of Korra we've had yet. It brought in some interesting conflicts and developed several of the characters in ways we haven't seen yet.

So, there were two main plots this week. First of all, the Northern Water Tribe is basically occupying the Southern Water Tribe. Things are very tense. Unalaq tells Korra that she must not take sides, and must try at all costs to prevent a civil war. She does her best, but unfortunately the Southern Tribe sees her actions as a betrayal. Meanwhile, Varrick is planning a rebellion against Unalaq. Korra shows up in time to stop a kidnapping attempt on Unalaq, horrified in thinking that her father is among the insurrectionists. When she discovers that he is not, she is so grateful that she returns home to apologize for all of the strife between them. Then... Unalaq appears, putting Korra's parents under arrest. 

I liked seeing Korra struggle with her duties as the Avatar. She has been craving the power and responsibility of being the Avatar for such a long time that once Unalaq gives it to her, she wants so badly to trust him. It's interesting, because Unalaq isn't shown as a totally unsympathetic character. He is certainly creepy, but he's not killing people in the streets or anything. He's a man who very firmly believes in something, and has lost sight of how best to go about getting it. It makes sense that Korra would be taken in by all his talk of "restoring balance" and whatnot. 

Suits: Stay (3x10)

This is our mid-season finale, and in truth I have some problems with it. Basically, I have the same complaints about this one as I did about the season opener. It was fine, but a bit lackluster, and I found some parts of the plot to be pretty contrived.

Okay. Plot-wise, basically we have Tanner re-enter the scene as Ava's lawyer. He's a jerk to everyone, of course, but he ultimately loses to Harvey. Duh. Harvey convinces Scottie to let the merger dissolve, thus allowing Harvey and Jessica to pin the blame for the murders where it rightfully belongs: on Darby. Scottie is reluctant at first, but eventually she caves. At this point, Ava is still ready to go after Harvey, but after a display of humility in which he apologizes for putting her in between his fight with Cameron, Ava decides to drop the case against Pearson Specter.

Meanwhile, Rachel is making pro/con lists about her potential law schools. She wants to make a decision about Stanford and Colombia without factoring Mike into the equation, which he thinks isn't going to work. Things get even more complicated when Jessica finds out about their relationship and demands that Rachel sign an affidavit stating that she knows about Mike's secret, and won't ever tell. The catch: if Rachel doesn't sign it, Jessica will fire Mike. Agonized, Mike realizes that the only way for Rachel to avoid signing it is if she goes to Stanford and takes herself out of the picture. Rachel makes her pro/con list list, and even though she admits that Stanford is a better fit, she decides to stay and go to Colombia. She approaches Jessica about the affidavit, and says that she'll sign it under one condition: Jessica must break the Harvard rule and hire Rachel to work at the firm.

The Legend of Korra: The Southern Lights (2x02)

The second episode of this season of The Legend of Korra was nearly as strong as its opening. Overall, the setup worked very well, as this story was told on a much smaller scale than the premiere. A group comprised of Korra, Mako, Bolin, Tonraq, Unalaq, and the twins Desna and Eska all set off to the South Pole to help restore balance to the Spirit World. Meanwhile, Tenzin and his family go to visit the Southern Air Temple.

So. Korra and the gang go on a fun little road trip through the snow. It's not actually all that fun, however, because Korra is angry at her father for still trying to be so controlling. Tonraq is worried about his daughter,  and he's angry at Unalaq. Unalaq says that Korra must open a Spirit Portal at the South Pole. Even worse, she most open it at the Winter Solstice - tomorrow! Unalaq explains that the Southern Water Tribe has been spiritually ruined, and that Korra can help by opening the Spirit Portal and allowing the Spirits to dance in the southern skies once more.

Well, that sounds dandy! Nothing at all suspicious could be going on here, especially not with Tonraq practically turning blue in the face telling Korra what a bad idea this is. Mako, Bolin, and the twins are silent on the matter. Korra is basically stuck between her father and her uncle.

Breaking Bad: Ozymandias (5x14)

10/10. This episode gets 10/10. There. Can we go home now? Has the art of television been perfected? I honestly don't know how the next two episodes are going to beat this. I mean... seriously. How can there be anything more after this? I was on the edge of my seat through this entire episode - I barely took notes while watching, because I was so riveted by what was happening on the screen.

A plot summary: We start with a flashback to Jesse and Walt's first cook together. Walt calls Skyler and talks about pizza for dinner, possible baby names, and a trip with the family. Slowly, Walt, Jesse, and the RV all vanish to reveal the current landscape. Gunfire is heard. Then it ceases.

We see that Hank has been shot in the leg. And... Gomez is dead. No!!! Jesse is nowhere to be found. Jack and his crew approach Hank and put a gun to his head. Walt, screaming, is let out of the car by Jack's men and tries to put a stop to it. He begs and pleads with Jack to let Hank go. He offers all of his money to save him. Hank refuses to cooperate and fold, even with all of Walt's pleading. Hank tells Walt that Jack "made up his mind ten minutes ago." Their last moment together was really complex and wonderful. Hank tells Walt that he's the smartest guy he ever met. You can see in his eyes all the regret and sadness that he hadn't really let himself feel since he found out about Walt.

The Legend of Korra: Rebel Spirit (2x01)

Alright! The Legend of Korra is back. I'll start by discussing briefly my feelings about this show in general: it's not as good as Avatar: the Last Airbender. There, I said it. It's not. That doesn't mean it sucks, though. In fact, while Korra has had its set of problems, I still think it has a lot of potential. The main problem with Season One was the pacing. The plot kept up a relentless pace, and there wasn't much time to develop the characters. As such, I find Korra, Bolin, Mako, etc. to be, as of yet, underdeveloped characters.

But enough about that. As we start the second season, I'm pleased to announce that things are improving. Six months have passed since the end of Season One, and we see what all our characters have been up to. Bolin is having bad luck with the new Pro-Bending "Fire Ferrets," and wishes for the time when he used to play on a team with Mako. Mako, meanwhile, has been working as a police officer, about to make detective. Korra is frustrated with Tenzin, who continually tries to teach her Air Bending. She feels she has mastered the art.

Anyway, it turns out that the whole gang is planning on heading to Korra's home, the Southern Water Tribe, for a festival, before heading to the Air Temples to continue Korra's teaching.

Suits: Bad Faith (3x09)

This episode sort of hits you over the head with its message, but in a good way. All the story lines had something to do with each other, and they all reinforced a similar idea: even though the law is supposed to be impartial, people use their personal baggage and feelings in order to manipulate others. Let's take a look at the plot.

The Pearson-Darby merger is splitting up, and both sides are trying to get a larger portion of the revenue. I'm not a lawyer so I'm not clear on the specifics, but the idea is pretty simple: each side wants more money. Harvey, Louis, Mike, Jessica, Katrina, Donna, basically the entire firm are all working to achieve this goal. On Darby's side, you've got Scottie and Nigel. I was really happy to see the return of Scottie, and Nigel is always an interesting character.

Due to time constraints I won't go into too many specifics, but basically Louis was sent to negotiate for Jessica, but Nigel uses his cat to get into Louis' head. Louis messes up, and it looks like Darby has won. To be honest, this was the biggest weak spot in this episode for me. It fits with the theme: things getting personal. But it felt so out of the realm of professionalism that I couldn't quite believe Louis was actually that weak. On the other hand, he did make it up in a big way by ultimately coming up with the solution to the problem, which I'll talk about in a second.

Breaking Bad: To'hajiilee (5x13)

I... don't... even... know... what... to... say. I'm in shock! This episode was a simply stunning example of what Breaking Bad is capable of. I was gripping the edge of my seat the whole way through, and the ending of the episode did not disappoint. I'll start with a plot summary, move to the few teeny tiny problems I had, and then finish with a discussion of why this episode kicked some ass.

So. Lydia is inspecting the meth production and talks to Todd about the necessity for a purer product. Todd then receives a phone call from Walt, asking him to set up a meeting with his uncle about a new target: Jesse Pinkman. At the meeting, Jack agrees to kill him only if he agrees to cook for their meth business one more time, just to help teach Todd. 

Jesse, Hank, and Gomez, meanwhile, concoct a plan to find Walt's money. Hank and Gomez go to Huell (Saul's bodyguard) and trick him into think that Walt has killed Jesse. He is, understandably, freaked out, and he tells them all that he knows. It's not enough to help them find the money, but it does give Hank another idea: based on Huell's hints, they know that Walt buried his money in seven tubs. They set up a fake tub of cash with dirt surrounding it, and Jesse sends a picture to Walt.

Suits: Endgame (3x08)

Ready for the briefest review of all reviews? Knowing me, I'll probably get to typing and find out I have more to say than I thought, but for the moment I'm trying to keep this brief. Bottom line? I liked this episode. It brought out a lot of these character relationships and shined some light on some very interesting dynamics. However, there were a few things that got swept under the carpet a little too quickly, which makes me upset that we don't get to see these dynamics stretch out even further. Also, Rachel got the shaft to the subplot again this week, which sort of upset me.

The plot of this episode took so many turns that I'm actually not going to give a detailed summary. I'll just say this: everyone at Pearson Darby Specter knows that Stephen is guilty (Darby has known for a while) but they have no real way to prove it. They try a lot of different tricks, but ultimately it boils down to getting Cameron on their side. Darby agrees to turn himself in to save Ava, and Cameron eventually takes the deal. Stephen is sold down the river. In a nice little twist, Darby is forced out of the picture by Jessica and the gang, with Cameron's assistance. Along with giving up Stephen, he also gives up his right to practice law in the country, which makes the Pearson-Darby merger a thing of the past.

In subplot news, it's Louis vs. Harold in one of the most pointless plots of the season. Harold is trying to sue Louis, Louis is brutal about it, and Rachel counsels him to let up on Harold. We learn that the reason why Louis has always been so harsh to Harold was that he reminds Louis of his failures, since he couldn't find a way to teach him. While this plot thread had a few nice ideas, it ultimately just distracted from the main plot. Rachel did nothing but act as Louis' conscience, and we still haven't seen Mike react to Rachel's big news about Colombia Law School. In addition, Harold is a character from the past, and it felt really out of place to have him poking his head in again. It was fun to see him in Louis' trial, but it was awkward to see them drag out his reappearance just to give us a moment of insight into Louis' tortured past.

Breaking Bad: Rabid Dog (5x12)

This episode had some problems with its pacing. It's strange, because generally I can't critique this show on that particular issue, but this week's installment felt at times too slow and and others too crowded. Each individual element was important and interesting, but when they were tied together into a cohesive episode, I found the whole to be less than the sum of its parts. Let's briefly summarize the plot:

Walt comes home, sees Saul's car, and enters his house, looking to confront Jesse. Jesse is gone, however, and Walt immediately undergoes steps to remove the gasoline from the house. When the carpet cleaners can't get the smell out of the carpet, Walt creates a story about a pump malfunction and tells it to Jr. and Skyler. The White family packs up to a hotel, where Walt sneaks off to talk to Saul about Jesse before being confronted by Skyler, who knows something else is going on. Reluctantly, Walt tells Skyler the truth. Also at the hotel, Walt and Jr. discuss Walt's cancer, and Walt calls Jesse to set up a meeting, leaving a message for him.

We go back to see Jesse's side of the story. He was about to light Walt's house on fire when Hank shows up and stops him. Hank tells Jesse that they can get Walt and make him pay if they work together. Jesse agrees, and goes to stay at Hank and Marie's house (anywhere else would be too dangerous - Walt would have him killed if it was known that he was going to be a witness against him). Jesse becomes skeptical, however, that Hank can really catch Walt. He records a confession, but he has no concrete evidence to supply. However, Hank tells Jesse that there's still a way to get Walt. Walt has agreed to meet Jesse in a public place to explain himself, and Hank tells Jesse that he has to go, wearing a wire, to try and catch Walt's confession on tape. Jesse reluctantly agrees, but at the last second bails on the plan, suspecting that Walt intends to kill him when he appears.

Suits: She's Mine (3x07)

Woah. Stephen Huntley is responsible for the murders.

Should I have given a spoiler alert before writing that? Here's the thing - I feel as if people are going to have very mixed reactions to this news. I'm conflicted, myself. On the one hand, I definitely didn't see that coming. On the other... I really didn't see it coming. As in... there weren't very many helpful hints leading up to that reveal. So what do I think of this plot twist? I think... it's... probably going to be very interesting to see how the characters handle it. In that sense, I think it's good. But from a plot standpoint, I am unconvinced. I feel as if we needed more of a buildup, or a better understanding of Huntley's character, before such a big twist occurred.

But of course that was only the big shock of the episode, and there were lots of other things going on that we have to talk about. Let's start with the most important subplot, which involved Rachel, Louis, Nigel, and a cat. Basically, Nigel returns from his trip and demands his cat back, but Louis has grown so attached to her that he decides to sue Nigel for custody, using Rachel as his lawyer. Does this sound like an elaborate setup for some weak comedy? Yes. Does it turn out that way? Surprisingly, no.