Aniela Krajewska

VIP

8

Holy shit. I'm sitting here, mouth agape, trying to form coherent sentences. What a great episode.

How hardcore do you have to be to stay awake while someone operates on you and talk them through the procedure? That is like the most metal thing that's ever happened on this show. My respect for Caitlin has always been high (honestly, the kind of shit that she has to deal with on a daily basis is unbelievable), but now it's skyrocketed.

Killer freaking Frost in the house! That scene at the end was so dramatic that I could feel my eyes burning with tears, but before I got the chance to start crying, everything went to shit in a completely different, yet somehow equally horrible way. I don't know, man. maybe I'm boring. But I just can't help but root for the good guys. I want them to win, to save the day or the girl or whatever and to be happy. I just hope Caitlin will be okay and they'll find a way to get rid of her homicidal alter ego for good. I guess it'll be fun to see her wreak some havoc around Central City, as long as it doesn't end up with her dead.

If Abra Kadabra wanted to get back to the future, why didn't he just hitch a ride with the Legends?

Joe is such a good dad. I'm so sad for him. Please don't hurt him and take his baby girl away from him. That would just be a whole new level of cruelty.

"Amaya, take the Backstreet Boys."

Can I get that on a T-shirt, please?

Oh, this episode made me feel nostalgic. I remember back when I was a little baby nerd - 11, maybe 12 years old - I was completely obsessed with The Lord of the Rings. I would watch the entire trilogy (extended editions, no less) almost every weekend. Years have passed and I've moved on to other franchises (I've practically sold my soul to sci-fi, space operas and superheores at this point), but my love for LotR still remains. I was delighted by all the references in this episode. By far my favorite was Rip's speech mirroring that of Aragorn's in "Return of the King".

I'm not religious, but I was born and raised in a country that's 95% Roman Catholic, so it was a teeny tiny bit weird for me to hear the Legends casually say the words "Jesus' blood". I guess it's kind of hard to treat Christ as a historical figure instead of our Lord and Savior when you've only heard other people call him the latter your whole life.

Nate: "Maybe they don't know how to use it."
Legion of Doom: immediately know how to use it

Yeah, we're fucked.

I loved Thea and Quentin's interactions in this episode. They have a really great father/daughter dynamic.

I'm actually starting to like Susan. Her relationship with Oliver is nice. But that drink she handed him when they met at the bar? Honey, that was not a drink. That wasn't even half a drink. I know that expensive alcohol is served in absurdly small amounts, but that was like one last sad tiny sip left at the bottom of the glass.

One thing that bothered me was that the team was in the middle of a workout when the bank robbery happened. They were all sweaty as fuck and probably didn't have time to shower, so how did they manage to get into their skintight leather outfits? That must have hurt.

That guy in the interrogation room (the DA, I think? I have terrible memory when it comes to recurring characters, so I'm not sure) was freaking scary. I'm assuming that when he said he'd been to hell, he meant that literally?

Little J.J. is adorable. That scene with the whole Diggle family was super cute.

And Evelyn is a double agent. Because of course she is. Girl, this is going to blow up in your face. I wish I could smack some sense into her right now. Who is even taking care of her? Where does she live? She's like 17. She should be doing homework, not standing broodily on rooftops and planning something shady with masked psychopaths.

First of all: YAAAAAAS, Jemma Simmons, my queen. Standing up to the Director like that and low-key blackmailing him? What an icon. What a badass.

So this week we got Agents of SHIELD: Prison Break edition! It was a perfectly entertaining, fast-paced, action-packed episode with just enough twists and turns to keep me on the edge of my seat. The special effects were great, as always.

I find it hard to believe that some of SHIELD's finest teamed up with a rogue Inhuman and a guy whose body is literally on fire sometimes and the Director didn't know anything about it. Like??? There was a plane and a quinjet involved? How is it possible that no one noticed?

I think it's safe to say that the May/Coulson romance is happening. "I saw you, Phil."? That is a line straight out of every cheesy fanfic ever written. I love it! Give me more!

Can FitzSimmons not fight, please? I just want these two to be happy. They deserve it.

It's absolutely hilarious to me that the book that contains infinite knowledge has its title written on the cover in big, sparkly letters. You'd think that whoever created it would've made it look more unassuming, but no. Here it is, Darkhold, ancient and powerful, looking like a 10-year-old's diary.

I'm glad that May said all those things to Daisy. If anyone can talk some sense into that girl, it's Melinda May.

Oh, and Daisy's eye make-up was out of control in this episode. Did she read Bucky Barnes' Begginers' Guide to Looking Like a Racoon?

The hospital storyline was thrilling, but it got overshadowed by Shaw's escape. That was a wild ride.

I legitimately laughed when Shaw shot Lambert. He really had it coming. Confronting Shaw without a bulletproof vest or backup was one of the stupidest things I've ever seen on this show. Maybe even the stupidest since the list of dumb stuff on Person of Interest isn't very long. It's one of the best TV shows I've ever had the pleasure of watching, after all.

Root only had a handful of scenes in this episode, which was kind of a disappointment after the previous one. On the other hand, we got Root in glasses and a lab coat, so I won't complain. Can Amy Acker please stop doing that thing with her face? You know, the thing where she's so goddamn stunning and perfect? I can't handle it.

It seems that I've developed trust issues, and even though I'm 99.9% sure that this time Shaw really got away from Samaritan, a part of me is still afraid that there'll be some cruel plot twist. I can't wait for next week. Hopefully we'll finally get a Shaw/Root reunion. It's about damn time.

Do you guys realize that there are only 5 episodes left? How am I supposed to live after this show ends?

"This is the second worst attack of the clones I've seen."

I was so excited for an episode centered around Ava, and boy, did it deliver! I loved every single storyline. And there were so many hilarious moments, I think it might actually be one of the funniest episodes this season (which says a lot because every single episode makes me laugh). The golden sticker for the scene that made me cry with laughter goes to Damien and Nate's therapy session. I'm still giggling just thinking about it. Stuff like that can only work on a show as wacky and insane as LoT.

Well, the show and I definitely agree that Ava was created from the finest genes in existence. I mean, damn. And I definitely liked that Ava reacted very emotionally to finding out she was a clone (as I imagine we all would if we were ever in that position) and questioned her entire existence, but they didn't drag it out for too long and didn't make an annoying angstfest out of it. She believed what Sara told her, realized that she was different from all those mindless copies, and now my girls are working together to kick Rip's ass for hiding the truth. I guess you could say they're going to RIP him a new one, huh?

(I'll see myself out.)

Zari teaching (or trying to, I guess) Mick to use his totem was absolutely great as well. I love that they don't ignore her faith and talk about things like Ramadan or her not being allowed to eat pork. There are few Muslim main characters on TV, so I'm sure that there are many fans out there who are stoked to see themselves represented in Zari. I'm thrilled for them.

I feel kind of disappointed that they killed Kuasa. She had a lot more potential, and they never really used it. I guess they needed something to push Amaya over the edge.

What a fun episode. I absolutely loved the film noir vibe.

One of the reasons why I enjoy this show so much is because a ragtag team of misfits becoming a family is one of my favorite tropes ever. The Legends are just delightful. Ray and Nate bickering and bro-hugging were hilarious. Mick and Amaya's Bonnie and Clyde team-up was unexpected, but worked extremely well. And Sara and Stein shared some touching, heartfelt moments.

I promised myself that I would focus on positive aspects of episodes in my reviews and not yell too much about the bad. So I just want you all to know that I do acknowledge the astounding level of hypocrisy of Sara and Stein deciding that keeping their family safe is more important than history just one week after the crossover where everyone turned their backs on Barry because of Flashpoint. Is it frustrating? Yes. Am I going to rant angrily about it? No. No, I'm not.

We haven't seen Malcolm Merlyn for a while. His fight with Sara was so good. There are few things better than two former League of Assassins members trying to kill each other.

And Snart was there as well! Which reminds me, if Ray has his suit back, who's going to wield the cold gun now?

The show has been working perfectly without Rip, but I guess he's coming back soon. I don't mind his character, but I've gotten used to the team dynamic we have now and I'm afraid his return might ruin that.

That was a good episode. Looks like another thing that changed when Barry altered the timeline was that the writers remembered how to make a superhero show.

The whole "Wild Dog screws up, Oliver gets angry and walks away" formula is getting annoying. We get it, he's the Impulsive One. No need to bring it up for the 50th time since the beginning of the season.

Both storylines were decently executed. Oliver breaking John out of prison was all right, although personally I thought that the rest of the team going after Church was a lot more interesting. The baby vigilantes are growing on me and the whole team dynamic is getting better. I'm starting to like both Evelyn and Rory.

I really enjoyed all the Felicity/Rory scenes. They felt very genuine and heartfelt. I already love their friendship.

I'm no scientist, and I certainly don't know a lot about physics, but I'm pretty sure that getting pulled up by a plane with a harness around your waist would hurt. A lot. Possibly even injure you? Break some bones? Rip your spine out? I don't know.

Superhero costumes aren't exactly notorious for being practical, I realize that, but what the hell is up with Curtis' mask? How does he manage to keep it on his face when he's fighting? Sheer force of will? Superglue? I know that his superhero name is Mr Terrific, but was slapping a piece of cloth shaped like the letter T on his face the best they could come up with?

"Was he waiting for an entrance line?"

And that, ladies and gentlemen, was the first time in years that Arrow has genuinely made me laugh.

Wow, they can't have 5 minutes of peace and quiet, can they?

Kara's speech gave me chills. This is the kind of thing that I watch Supergirl for. Messages of hope, positvity, courage, kindness and love. I often think that I would've loved Supergirl if it had been on TV when I was a kid. Sure, I love it now too, but 10-year-old me would have been thrilled with a role model like Kara or Alex.

Kara and Winn are adorable, my God. I don't ship them, but I kind of understand people who do.

KARA AND CAT! * screams for 1000 years * I love them! And Kara's got her own office now! I feel strangely proud. It's like watching a baby bird fly for the first time.

Kara and Alex break my heart. Familial relationships are often neglected in favor of romantic ones, but these two are, thankfully, not the case. They had some great scenes in this episode and I could just watch them forever. There's so much love between them.

Kara and J'onn, a.k.a. Alien Puppy and Space Dad kicking ass together was great to watch. J'onn literally ripping Indigo in half was freaking hardcore. The scene with Kara and Non shooting heat vision at each other must have been awkward to film: two people staring very intensely at each other and screaming.

I just want them to announce season 2. I can't handle not knowing. I need more Supergirl in my life! I had no idea how attached I'd get to the characters when I started watching the show, but here we are.

Leverage is my ultimate comfort show. I only watched it for the first time last year, but I loved it immediately. It's got a fantastic bunch of characters, the found family trope, a cool heist in every episode, wacky hijinks that make you wheeze with laughter, and a fun, campy tone that's so refreshing in a world where more and more shows take themselves way too seriously. I started rewatching the original show last month in preparation for the revival (of course I timed it wrong and didn't manage to finish, but whatever), and it holds up so well on the second viewing. Not many shows manage to make me smile and say "God, I love this so much" after almost every episode, but Leverage is one of those rare gems. And thankfully the first episode of Redemption left me with the same bubbly feeling. The original cast members have barely aged (they're all looking :fire::fire::fire:) and the chemistry between them is as good as ever. Nate was always my least favorite of the bunch, so I don't miss him all that much. Harry seems like he'll be a good addition to the team. The first 10 minutes of the episode did feel just a little rusty, but after that it kept improving and by the end the Leverage we know and love was fully back. The banter is there, the chaotic energy is there, the fun is there. I'm honestly really pleased so far. Now, if they could just canonically give us the OT3... It's time.

Give M'gann more screentime 2k17. She's such a fascinating character and her relationship with J'onn is incredible. She should appear way more often. Same goes for Maggie, whose lack of storylines makes me even angrier because she's a main character. Maybe if they focused less on a certain fuckboy, we could get more of these two kickass women.

The White Martians are coming! I'm so excited!

Livewire is a great villain, and I enjoy her role as Kara's recurring nemesis. I also thought it was a clever plot twist to make her a victim in this episode. And there was yet another evil British scientist. What is it about Brits that makes Americans constantly cast them as bad guys? It's a mystery to me.

Kara finally knows that James is Guardian. There were obvious parallels between them in this episode - they both told the other that they don't get to decide who becomes a hero, and they were both pretty hypocritical about it. I guess I understand Kara's point of view - Lord knows she's lost enough people and she just wants to protect her friends, but James and Winn are also kind of right?

Winn continues to be the funniest character on the show. Jeremy Jordan's comedic timing is impeccable. And his face when Team Guardian got Space Dad's official seal of approval? Priceless. I love my reckless children throwing themselves into danger while yelling YOLO and their exasperated Martian father shaking his head in the background.

I hope we'll get more Kara/Alex/Maggie scenes. I love the three of them so much.

I wanted to see Alex and Maggie eat vegan ice cream (which sounds super gross, by the way, go cow or go home), but no. No, instead I had to suffer through two minutes of Mon-El making sad puppy dog eyes at Kara and acting all sweet so that we'll believe what a good guy he is for her. At least she rejected him for now, but I'm willing to bet my right hand that it's just temporary and eventually she'll give in to his "charms". Kara, honey. You deserve so much better. Why can't the writers see that?

Edith is trash for accepting Bertie's proposal without telling him the truth. Whatever Mary's motivations, she did Bertie a favor. Who knows how long it would've taken Edith to come clean. I wouldn't put it past her to keep him in the dark forever, which would've been unfair to him and Marigold.

Honestly, people who like Edith mystify me. She's supposed to be the nice one, yet I struggle to think of a single instance where she went out of her way to help anyone. The soldiers in the hospital during the war, I guess, but that's about it, and I bet she wouldn't have been half as enthusiastic about it if it was women she was taking care of, ultimate pick-me girl that she is. Meanwhile, we've seen Mary be kind on numerous occasions and help many people, including Anna, Tom, Carson, Lavinia, Rose, Mrs Hughes, even Barrow. But Edith's storyline is always about her: her love life, her child, her magazine. She seems to have little interest in anyone outside of herself. Mary can be a bitch like nobody's business, but Edith is self-involved to the max and I can't take to her at all.

Also, Tom's meddling in Mary's relationship was just weird and out of line. And I can't believe it didn't occur to anyone that Mary may be hesitant to marry a dude who drives for a living after her last husband literally died in a car crash.

Honestly the fact that we only have 5 episodes left now makes me wanna stab myself in the foot (but it's fine, I'm fine).

I loved seeing Dichen Lachman again, this time sans scars and homocidal tendencies. I really hope she and Daisy will get to interact when she shows up again. Also, when she called Cora her daughter... I assume she meant that in a spiritual sense rather than biological, but still, Daisy Johnson has left the chat.

YoYo and May are just a delightful duo. I love that they decided to use sparring as a way for Elena to get in touch with her feelings. And I guess she's just a regular speedster now? That's neat, I always thought the bouncing back thing was a tad lame. They could've done that a little earlier on in the show though, just saying.

FitzSimmons never catch a break. They've beaten the odds so many times, from being stuck on the ocean floor and running out of air to Jemma getting transported to an alien planet to Fitz becoming kinda evil and then literally dying... And the writers keep finding new ways to separate them and tug at our heartstrings. I swear, if these two don't end up in some cottage in Scotland with three children and a dog...

Speaking of romantic relationships, they want us to ship Daisy and Sousa, right? Otherwise, why would they make a point of Daisy telling Coulson that she's glad Daniel's with them? What other explanation is there for that scene with Sousa dutifully sitting down by the healing chamber to watch over Daisy while she got her rest? I'm torn because I like that pairing a lot - it totally came out of left field for me, but I'm loving it - but Enver Gjokaj is only listed on IMDb through episode 10, which I realize might not mean anything and he could very well stick around until the finale, but I don't wanna get my hopes up in case he actually does leave at some point. But like I said, why would they give them so many scenes together with so much romantic subtext if they weren't going in that direction?

Can Daisy just kick Nathaniel's ass already? I hate seeing him with her powers. They are a part of her in a way that he could never fully understand or hope to achieve. They're embedded in her DNA while his came from a syringe. I hope we get to see Daisy unleash a completely new level of destruction when she finally confronts him. Tear the bitch apart, babe!

Next week we're going to have a Groundhog Day timeloop situation with Daisy and I am LIVING for it. I loved it when Legends of Tomorrow did it and I can't wait to see the SHIELD version.

And now it's time for what might be my favorite episode of the show:
4x15 "Self Control"
When I said I SCREAMED while watching this... Season 4 is my favorite season and the sheer power of this episode is absolutely unmatched. Fitz and Simmons trying to figure out which one of them was an LMD was easily one of their top 3 tragic scenes and one of the best acted of the entire show. The range of emotions they both went through in a single scene was insane. The general consensus in the fandom seems to be that Iain is the best actor on the show, which I agree with, but Elizabeth is right up there with him. If either one of them were a lesser actor, that scene and FitzSimmons in general would never have worked. The way they bounce off of each other so beautifully is what made the magic happen. And aside from that, we got all that wonderful Daisy and Jemma content (their friendship gets overlooked so often it's not even funny, so the whole Framework arc and "us against the world" gave me life). Also robot May sacrificing herself. This episode >>>>>>> literally all the MCU movies (and I say that as someone who really likes the movies, but Endgame wishes it had half the emotional impact of this masterpiece).

Imagine you're just some random asshole living in 1931 and someone casually drops the words "World War II" into the conversation.

So the green stuff turned out to be Captain America's Super Steroids (thank you Simmons for both your brilliant biochemical analysis and pushing back against the sexism of the time). Fitz is still MIA because it's a rule that Fitzsimmons can never be happy (Iain probably didn't mind the extended vacation though, I can just picture him chillin' at home while the rest of the cast was busting their asses filming the show - good for him). May and Enoch's mortal combat scene was a lot of fun, but I'm genuinely worried about our girl Melinda. She seems to have reverted back to her aloof traumatized post-Bahrain self. The way she was absolutely ready to murder Enoch for a seond there... heavy stuff. Meanwhile, Daisy didn't get to quake anything, so really, what even was the point of this episode? And the whole to-kill-or-not-to-kill dilemma was interesting. You can't really punish someone for something they haven't done yet... or can you? Or more importantly, should you? It's the whole baby Hitler problem all over again (although even Deadpool didn't go through with that one, which is saying something). And finally, Koenig and Enoch is a fun duo that I'd love to see more of. Everything that led to the creation of SHIELD would be great miniseries material. And we're officially out of the 1930s and into a new time period! Can't wait.

And now, for the first entry in the Top 10 That No One Asked For (also these will be in chronological order cause I can't be arsed to actually rank them according to how much I like them in comparison to each other), we're kicking things off with a blast from the past:
1x06 "FZZT"
This was the best episode of the first half of season one (which was still good, don't @ me - those were simpler, brighter days; sometimes I miss the team just vibin' on the Bus and traveling around the world). That was also the first Fitzsimmons-centric episode and our first glimpse into how heart-wrenching they would become - up until that point they had mostly provided comic relief. Simmons trying to sacrifice herself and jumping off the plane while the music dramatically builds in the background and Fitz screams his lungs out in anguish KNOCKED me stone cold fucking dead, I cannot even begin to describe the emotions I was feeling. Also that was the first time Jemma was actually referred to by her first name, which I don't think we even knew prior to the episode (Coulson saying "I'm sorry, Jemma" before locking her in the lab is forever etched into my brain, the dramatic tension of that scene was off the charts). Fitzsimmons sitting and talking on the floor on the opposite sides of the glass door was poetic cinema and Fitz ignoring the quarantine and saying they were gonna fix it together was the moment I knew I was gonna go down with that fucking ship. I think about that episode a few times a week, no joke. I do believe that was the point where AoS went from a show I was casually interested in to a full-blown obsession. When I first thought of doing this top 10, FZZT was the first episode that popped into my head. 10/10, never change sweetie.

I've been putting watching this episode off all day. I considered not watching it at all. But in the end, I decided to just get it over with. Like ripping off a band-aid.

Now, I knew this was coming, of course. The rumors have been circulating around Tumblr since long before the season started. I knew Sanvers were going to break up. I knew Maggie was gonna leave. And in a way, I feel like I've tried to detach myself from this relationship because if I hadn't, I would've spiraled straight into crippling depression. I've tried to push all my love for this ship into a deep corner of my mind and lock it away. Just a self-preservation mechanism. It's been semi-successful. As I'm writing this, there are no tears in my eyes. However, there is a cold, horrible emptiness spreading through my chest. I'm not even sure if that's better or worse anymore. At least when you cry, you get a sense of relief at some point. But this? I will carry this around with me and it's not going away anytime soon.

I've shipped a lot of ships. There have been dozens upon dozens of couples in all forms of media whom I wanted to get together and be happy forever. But no matter how many there are, each and every one of them is unique. Each and every one holds a special place in my heart. Each and every one has made me laugh and cry, and daydream, and squeal while reading fanfiction at ungodly hours. Sanvers did more. Sanvers gave me hope. Sanvers helped me come out to people in my life. Sanvers made me believe that one day, I might have an epic love story of my own. Sanvers got me through some very dark times. And for that, I am forever grateful.

You know what the saddest thing is? I truly believed they would make it. I mean, I hope all my couples are endgame, but with Sanvers, I was so sure. I don't even care how this happened anymore. Whether it was Floriana's decision or the writers', that's irrelevant. What matters is that Maggie's gone. And with her, a piece of my soul that I will never get back.

Goodbye, baby girl. You deserve all the love and happiness in the world. I hope you'll find it.

P.S. I really loved the rest of the episode, by the way. I thought Lena's storyline was great and Katie McGrath was brilliant. But I'm not in the right mindset to talk about it in-depth right now. I need a 70-hour nap. Or a drink. Possibly both.

Man, as much as I love the show, I really don't like that the writers seem to keep coming up with new ways to make the characters miserable. I know that season 1 is generally considered the weakest, and story-wise season 3 is a lot better, but I'm one of those people who care more about the characters than the plot. Remember when those guys used to laugh and prank each other? Good times. I just want them to be happy for 5 minutes, without some big threat of someone dying and the world ending constantly hanging over their heads. Couldn't they at least brighten things up a bit? Why are the lights in the base so dim? Why do the characters only own black, dark blue or grey clothes?

Let's start with the good stuff: Lincoln's not as stupid as I thought he was. The plan was awesome, I didn't see it coming (mostly because I was sure that Lincoln was really that naive). Daisy's back, which is great, but let's face it, this is AoS, she'll probably suffer and feel guilty. I just want to wrap her in cozy blankets and keep her safe. Fitzsimmons working together is always nice. I can't wait for the rest of the team to find out that they are a couple. Lash vs. Hive was epic. I expected it to happen at some point (why else would the showrunners keep Lash around?). I'm kind of disappointed they didn't save it for the finale, though. Mack and Elena are adorable. I really like her character.

Now the slightly less good stuff: stop foreshadowing with that goddamn cross! And you let James kill Lash? Really? You have a super powerful Inhuman who's immune to Hive, and he gets killed by some dude with a chain? Are you kidding me?

The stakes on this show are ridiculously high. An evil, ancient being is about to turn half of the population into zombies whose only purpose is to serve him, and he's planning to use a warhead to do it, and yet the only people fighting to stop him are about a dozen Shield agents. I know they can't get all the movie stars to appear on the show, but that's some Avengers-level crap. Their little feud in Civil War seems a little irrelevant in comparison. Then again, the movies seem to pretend that this show doesn't exist, so I don't know why I even expect some acknowledgment from them anymore.

2 more episodes to go. I'm not ready for the finale. I should probably start meditating or something, because this show stresses me out more than school, and that's saying something.