Home Alone is a perfect movie, not in the sense that there is zero room for improvement or it's the greatest artistic achievement in human history, but in that it does what it sets out to do in a nigh-flawless fashion. It is impeccably paced, shot, and edited. It has the right balance of escapist fantasy, relatable family drama, humor, heart, and even slapstick comedy to keep the film lively without making it a piece of fluff. And miraculously, despite a cast full of ringers like Catherine O’Hara and Joe Pesci, the whole thing hinges on the acting talents of a nine-year-old boy who pulls it off with flying colors.
Because as great as O’Hara is as the mother desperate to get back to her son, as amusing as Pesci and Daniel Stern are as a pair of robbers who get more than they bargained for, as hilarious as the inimitable John Candy (who steals the show with less than five minutes of screen time) is as a polka-playing good Samaritan, Home Alone is, first and foremost, a story about Kevin McCallister, and even at that tender age, Culkin (with a huge assist from writer John Hughes and director Chris Columbus) sells that story like a champ.
That’s part of why Home Alone works so perfectly as a family movie that plays with both kids and adults. As a child, the more outsized elements of the story loom large. The iconic scenes of Kevin tormenting his pursuers offer a spate of perfectly deployed slapstick, worthy of Looney Tunes or The Three Stooges and apt to elicit any number of giggles from the younger members of the audience. By the same token, there’s an escapist fantasy for kids in the early part of the film, where Kevin jumps on the bed, eats junk, and “watches rubbish” without anyone being able to tell him otherwise. There is an incredible sense of fun to these scenes, whether it’s the ACME-inspired antics and great physical performances of the “Wet Bandits” or Kevin living out the immediate joy of his wish to be family-free.
But what makes the film more than just an insubstantial flight of fancy is the way it mixes that holiday mirth with enough heft, enough of the downside of that wish and a stealthily nuanced depiction of a young child maturing in both his ability to take care of himself and his understanding of the world.
When we meet Kevin in the film’s frenetic opening sequence, showing an entire household abuzz with cousins and uncles all in a state of pre-travel frenzy, Kevin cannot even pack his own suitcase. There’s recurring jabs from his siblings and cousins that his mom has to do everything for him. Over the course of the film, when pressed into service by being the all to his lonesome, Kevin becomes a surprisingly self-sufficient little boy. When not smothered by a score of other siblings, he shows a surprising resourcefulness, proving himself able to go to the store, do laundry, and even leave out cookies for Santa Claus when the time arrives. This culminates in the cornucopia of traps Kevin sets for the robbers, proving that he is even capable of defending his house from those who would do his family harm.
In the process, Kevin overcomes a number of his fears, which provides another thematic throughline for the film. Chris Columbus and Director of Photography Julio Macat help this part of the story tremendously by the way a series of normal things are made frightening by shooting them from Kevin’s perspective. From the low shot on the furnace in the basement as it seems to taunt and beckon Kevin while he’s doing laundry, to the scene in the store where Old Man Marley is introduced only by his big black boots, seeming to glower down at Kevin from high above, Macat’s camera keeps us inside Kevin’s head, seeing the terror in these otherwise quotidian interactions. That cinches Kevin’s transition when he tells the furnace not to bother – we understand what he’s overcoming.
The heart of the movie, however, comes through in the scene where he conquers his other big fear – his scary looking next door neighbor, whom his brother described as a secret murderer the cops couldn’t catch. When Kevin runs into him at church, he discovers that Marley isn’t some serial ghoul, but rather a kindly old man who offers him a bit of solace and comfort in a time of need.
It’s an incredibly well-written scene, bolstered by the stellar performance of Roberts Blossom as Marley and Culkin playing Kevin at his most precocious and worldly. Blossom sells the utter warmth and humanity of Blossom behind his icy visage. His sitting next to Kevin as a friendly presence, telling a small part of his life story, and speaking to the lad as something approaching an equal provides a big leap for the film’s protagonist. It’s part of that maturation process, the realization that he shouldn’t judge a book by its cover, that he can’t necessarily trust his brother’s accounts, and that the people who seem the most unnerving can be the people you want in your hour of need. In one scene, Old Man Marley goes from being the film’s great threat to being its heart.
And he ties into the other big motif running through the film – an appreciation of one’s family. What could easily be a trite Hallmark card of a message from the movie has real force from the way the lesson is delivered. When Kevin wishes he had no family, the film helps us understand why, putting him in that relatable little kid situation of causing a scene, feeling you were goaded into it, and that nobody takes treats you nicely or appreciates you. And then when his wish comes true, it takes some time to let the audience, and Kevin, revel in his newfound freedom. But it also show’s Kevin slowly but surely realizing that he misses them, and that as much as they drive him nuts sometimes, having them back is what he really wants for Christmas.
That’s why the scene and story of Old Man Marley’s estrangement with his son is so important. It’s center on the idea that the issues Kevin is dealing with – fear, family discontent, loneliness around the holidays – are not unique to him or his tender age, but are universal obstacles that people of all ages confront at various points in their life. It’s a sign of Kevin’s broadening perspective, the way he’s being changed by this experience and learns that it’s possible to love your family even when you’re angry with them.
It’s also his realization that even in those impulsive moments, whether you’re an old man or a little boy, that you make grand declarations about not wanting to be a part of your family anymore, you may soon find yourself regretting it, yearning for the thing you were so ready to give up. Kevin starts to understand this in Home Alone, and it’s why his sincere plea to one of Santa’s “messengers” (who amusingly offers him tic tacs and can’t get his car started) to bring his family back has weight and meaning.
All of this is able to come together so well because so many of the technical, or less showy parts of the film are all done extraordinarily well. John Williams’s score expertly matches the mood of the film at every turn, whether he’s playing yuletide pop classics or an orchestral score that fits a grand escape or moment of tension. The writing has a clockwork quality to it. Hughes’s script accounts for the circumstances in which a nine-year-old would left alone by himself, unable to be contacted by his parents or the authorities in a nicely plausible fashion, and he constructs a series of events in which Kevin believes he wished his family away and then wished them back in a way that is equally convincing for the kid and the viewer.
And the film is shot and edited superbly, with amusing cuts like Kevin calling out for his mother with an immediate smash cut to a roaring airplane, or the frenzied fashion in which the McCallisters are depicted racing through the airport. Every part of this film works in sync, to deliver a visually exciting, narratively sound work that lets its humor, story, and message, land without a hint of friction.
So when we reach the end of the film and see Kevin’s reunion with his family, and Old Man Marley’s reunion with his, both moments feel earned. Chris Columbus tells a nigh-wordless story in the final scene, with O’Hara’s Kate McCallister silently marveling at how great the house looks and Kevin offering an expression of reluctance, one that suggests he might still be holding onto the anger he unleashed at this mother the last time they were face to face, before quickly sliding into a smile and running to embrace her. Their expressions tell the story, of the way both mother and child now see each other differently on this Christmas Day. The same goes for the expression of gratitude, of near-tearful camaraderie, between Kevin and Old Man Marley as Kevin witnesses his new friends’ reunion with a family of his own. Everyone here has grown; everyone has taken chances despite their fears, and come out better for it.
Throughout all of this, Home Alone manages to be cute, sweet, thrilling, funny, sharp, clever, and hopeful. For films set alone the holiday, it’s all too easy to lean into maudlin sentiment or cloying comedy, but Hughes’s and Columbus’s collaboration produced a film that manages to be nimble and amusing from start to finish, with enough meaning and mirth in it to make the story told feel as important as it is small. Home Alone tells the tale of a young man learning that despite his fear, his inexperience, and his familial resentments, he’s ready to take his first step into adulthood, and finds in the process that what he needs most are the people he was afraid of or wanted to wish away.
Wonderful Finale for a great series. I cried. A lot. A LOT.
The perfect ending. :)
What can you say about the farewell of a show that has meant so much to so many people?It is the kind of event that you can only judge to some extent because at a certain point the "love letter to the fans" that Craig Daniels wrote draws you in emotionally and you end up loving it. I guess I deserve to give this show the best tribute I can. Let me start here, I am a big fan, and all my life I have been bullied and never had very many friends. The last few years have been especially tough for me and I have struggled with very intense things that have led to some very serious actions, to say the least. I have grown up with these characters as part of my life and throughout my life they have served as friends when I had no other ones. The last few years these characters have been there for me and seeing them grow has helped me grow. A show that means so much to me had to finish perfectly or it all would be ruined. I sat down already teary eyed knowing that they would be gone from my life in an hour. The episode delivered great laughs, but it delivered a lot more. The episode delivered very intimate moments that were much needed. Plot lines that begun throughout the show came to a good conclusion and old stars returned with perfect timing. It was a sweet, beautiful, amazing, perfect love letter from the amazing cast to all of it's fans. I must admit that I was in tears seeing how much the characters had grown since we first visited this little town of Scranton Pennsylvania. The story line of the friendship between Dwight and Jim is particularly heart- warming. Every character ended up just where they should have and the final shot was perfection. "Sometimes goodbyes are a *****" but this perfect love letter softened the blow. The show will be missed, but it did end perfectly.
This episode received three Primetime Emmy Award nominations for the 65th Primetime Emmy Awards. Greg Daniels was nominated for Outstanding Writing for a Comedy Series and Ben Patrick, John W. Cook, and Rob Carr were nominated for Outstanding Sound Mixing for a Comedy or Drama Series (Half-Hour) and Animation. David Rogers and Claire Scanlon won for Outstanding Single-Camera Picture Editing for a Comedy Series, marking the fifth win for The Office at the Emmys overall and the series' first win since 2009.Rogers and Scanlon also won an ACE Eddie award for Best Edited Half-Hour Series for Television.
Mare of Easttown turned out to be all about mothers and sons, a powerful character study about grief, family and resilience of women, and not so much about the killings. The finale was entertaining, certainly very emotional. There are some missing pieces but overall, it was well done.
The whole murder weapon storyline was disappointing. I'm definitely no gun expert but why would an ex cop keep a loaded gun in a shed in his backyard? And if Mr. Carroll is so forgetful, how would he remember how many bullets were in there? He knew 2 bullets were gone, did nothing, and continue to keep the gun in the shed?
How does Ryan was able to leave the party to get his bike, stop by to get the gun, and ride his bike to Brandyville park, which is 13 miles out of town, and still beat Erin in an hour and ten minutes?
I can't settle with how Deacon Mark left Erin in a park, alone, in the middle of the night, without her bike. His last scene in the church was framed as somehow uplifting moment, which felt wrong. Everyone thinks he's a pervert but the minute it turns out he didn't kill Erin, this proves he's innocent of all previous accusations. Super heavy to just dismiss, given the history of the Catholic church.
If John bought the locket for Erin and why did he put Billy's name on the receipt? If he wanted anonymity, why not put a totally different and random name?
Why would Lori get custody of DJ after lying to the police? And the family raising DJ is just weird - they killed his mother, tried to cover it up, and on the top of that, he is a child of incest. I feel like DJ should have been adopted by another family so he could have a normal childhood. This brings me to the next problem - at what point did Lori find out John was having sex with Erin and not Sandra? John started preying on Erin when she was just 14-years old, and they were related. A few words from Lori about how freaking messed up it was would have been nice. It seems like everyone had at least one good thing going for them, no matter how depressing their lives are, except for Lori. I have to praise Julianne Nicholson for the harrowing performance in this episode. The scene of Ryan running and clinging to his mom was very heartbreaking. John may not have pulled the trigger, but he may as well have.
I'm glad we saw Katie Bailey and her family for a few seconds, but what about the other girl? They introduced such a dark theme - kidnapping and raping two girls, wrapped it up in 15 minutes, choosing a random character with no association to the town as the kidnapper, and then kind of forgot about this storyline. It just felt unfinished.
The last shot was pure poetry.
All in all, the finale was good, but not as great as the other episodes. Maybe that's problem with all mystery shows though - they build up the mystery so carefully and then finish not nearly as strong as one was hoping for.
[7.9/10] I don’t know how Stranger Things wants me to feel about Papa. From my vantage point, he is, as Eleven calls him, a monster. In both flashbacks and present day scenes, we’ve seen him abuse the children in his care. So much of the first two seasons in particular was centered on Eleven moving past that. She embraces this new, wholesome, loving family, and discards her old, pernicious one. She finds a real dad, one who loves her and cares for her, rather than to have to swallow the harm presented as love she’d endured for so much of her life.
But then this season presented him as a force for good, at least to a degree. He helps Eleven regain her powers, as the ability to lift the giant metal drum indicates. He thinks she’s the only thing that can stop Henry/One/Vecna. He’s trying to make her better, make her well.
At the same time, though, Papa doesn’t care about what Eleven wants. He doesn’t care about her psychological well-being. Owens calls him out for it. He reminds Brenner that this bunker was never meant to be a prison and upbraids him for freaking out Eleven with the threat of Henry breaking the boundary between worlds, rather than easing her into it. Papa thinks he knows what’s best for his “daughter”. He holds her against her will, declaring that it’s for her own good, trapping her in the same shock collars he once held all of his other “children” in.
I was, frankly, glad to see that. It played like a reminder that Brenner is not a good man. After a season in which the show seemed to be trying to rehabilitate him, it finally had his worse, controlling, abusive nature rear its ugly head. Confining Eleven, ignoring her wishes, drugging her and putting her under your control, is legitimately monstrous.
And yet, when the military baddies show up, he tries to save her. More to the point, he wants her to believe that he always meant well, that he wanted what was best for her. God help me, maybe he did, at least in his own mind. I want to give Stranger Things credit. I want to believe it understands the nuance of abuse, where abusers do not necessarily see themselves as monsters, but think they’re doing the right thing for their victims. I want to buy that it sees the shades of gray in Brenner, someone who does unspeakable, repugnant things to innocent kids, but in his own twisted way, thinks he’s helping them. There is truth in that, and a complicated villain is a better villain.
The fact that Eleven grants him no absolution, but simply bids “Papa” goodbye, suggests the series understands. The feelings of the abused toward their parents is complicated. Love, attachment, care remains, even if it becomes hard to reconcile with the horrors inflicted. In a show that’s not afraid to spell things out, it leaves all this to subtext, a bold, subtle move that leads to humble, foolhardy viewers potentially overreading the situation.
Speaking of subtext, I don’t know if we’re going to get a scene with Will and Mike more emotionally explicit than the one we got here. The Pizza Van crew finally matters to the story, showing up to rescue Eleven from the Bunker and take her where she needs to go. But the most important thing they do isn’t plot-relevant.
It comes when Will reassures a worried Mike. Mike fears that Eleven doesn’t need him anymore, that he was a dumb schmuck who happened to find her, but that it’s not fated they be together. Will offers an emotional reassurance, about -- how it’s Mike’s heart that holds him together, how much he still means to her, how much he’ll always mean to her -- when it’s clear (to the audience at least) that he’s really talking about himself rather than Eleven.
It’s a great performance from Noah Schnapp, who absolutely kills it with the projected emotions he feels when speaking about someone else’s relationship. The reveal with his vaunted painting works and weaves together the complicated feelings of all three members of this unorthodox love triangle. The catch is, I don’t know if I want the show to go further than this. Will professing his true feelings in plain terms seems like a bill that’s due for the show at this point. And yet, there’s something poignant about Will having these feelings but, due to societal prejudices and recognizing where his friend’s heart lies, not being able to express them. There’s something true to life, even artful about that, and I wonder where Stranger Things will leave it.
I wonder far less what’s going to happen with Joyce, Hopper, Murray, and their pair of reluctant Russian allies. The most important thing in that corner of the show right now is the reveal that the Soviets are experimenting on creatures from the Upside Down. The scientists at this facility are vivisecting demogorgons, seemingly cloning or growing their own army of this sort of fauna, and even appear to have a mind flayer contained within their walls. Who knows what it means exactly, beyond the obvious -- the Ruskies are prepping for a war with extraordinary, albeit uncontrollable, weapons at their disposal -- but it’s an intriguing reveal.
What’s less intriguing is the Joyce/Hopper crew trying to find their way back to the United States. Escaping from the Russian prison is surprisingly easy. (Apparently Yuri’s van is bulletproof, which, fair I guess?) Their mission to use some combo of Yuri’s helicopter and a coded message to allies in the USA to get back is fine. But even this penultimate episode can’t escape the sense that this is a sideshow to keep the adults away from the major events happening in Hawkins and the the desert, rather than a meaningful part of the story in and of itself. Even Hopper and Joyce’s mutual “I thought you were dead” conversation doesn’t have much juice to it.
We get more character moments among the now united Hawkins faithful though. There’s still some excitement here. Nancy witnesses the horrors Henry experienced and then, in a big surprise, he lets her go as a messenger for Eleven. The crew steals a winnebago and collects weapons to fight Vecna’s demons. And they sit in fear with the knowledge that he means to use “four gates” to shatter the bounds between his world and ours, putting everyone our heroes know and love at risk in the process.
Still, this is mostly a “calm before the storm” part of the story for the Hawkins kids, which tend to be some of my favorite parts of genre movies and shows. It’s a chance to have those important character moments before the last act fireworks take the stage. We get to see the players bouncing off one another, expressing what they mean to each other, rather than just hacking and slashing at the dramatic CGI beastie du jour.
Some of these moments are small. Erica telling Lucas that even if they bicker, he’s still her brother, is quite sweet. Eddie roughhousing with Dustin over his puns and telling him to never change is weirdly flirtatious, but also very rousing in how he sees the kid’s greatness. And as much as I’m down on all the teases of Steve and Nancy getting back together, Steve waxing rhapsodic about his dream to have a whole “brood of Harringtons” roaming the countryside in a car like this, while Nancy looks on admiringly, is a really warm moment.
But there’s bigger moments too. Robyn seeing her crush with a boy and it hitting her like lightning is sad and sympathetic. But the same goes for her and Steve aiming to reassure her about it, while she insists there’s bigger fish to fry right now, but he still shows care for his best friend. Likewise, Max and Lucas’ heart-to-heart -- about Max’s willingness to be the bait for Vecna because she doesn’t want to be in harm’s way, about her confidence that she can best him by finding her happiest moment that just so happens to involve Lucas, and Lucas’ insistence that if things go wrong he’s going to deploy Kate Bush in a heartbeat -- affirms one of the sweetest and most earnest little romances on the show before the going gets tough.
Let’s be real, it’s stupid as hell for the kids to strap up and head into the breach to fight a psychic, telekinetic demon dude. Sure, there’s the patina of plausibility to the plan, with the notion that they can get him in his trance while he’s going after Max, something he needs in order to reach this world. But Eleven’s right to fear for them after she uses her mental wandering powers to learn what they’re up to. The blaring sounds of a Journey ballad undercuts the gravity of the situation (and weakens the vibe) more than a little as the episode comes to a close, but it’s a still an ominous thing our heroes are walking into.
There’s grace notes for other villains here. The jerk jock whose name I’ve forgotten in the month or so between episodes menaces Nancy at the gun shop, but never feels like more than a tertiary villain from another show. The big bad military dude shows he’s truly evil (if the torture didn’t do it) when Ownes gives him a safe way to test his theory that Eleven’s behind all the killings, and the guy decides to just kill her anyway. And Henry gets a few more chances to show his victims what waits in store for them if they continue down this path.
The heart of this one, though, comes with Eleven’s confrontation of her would-be father. She takes out those military goons with comparative ease, under the circumstances. SOme of the show’s best imagery comes with her and her pals amid the desert blaze. Eleven even enacts violence against Papa when he threatens to cage her again, force his will upon her “for her own good.”
In the end, though, forces beyond his control prevent him from enacting his plan. To his dying breath, he wants his “daughter” to believe that he meant well. Eleven won’t grant him the forgiveness and understanding he seeks, because whatever lingering attachment she has to the man who raised her, he doesn’t deserve it. But now, whatever his wishes, she is untethered, recharged, and ready to save the people who do deserve her care, and her love.
An entire episode of stress, scares and more mysteries.
Give me the next episode already!
"I'm agent Beyonce and this is my partner, agent Z". Dammit Cas. He's just so not good at choosing names. And he mocking Crowley with that baby voice. Our Cas is learning guys. I love them being together. It feels like they are in a buddy cop. this is my favourite one. This story arc is gonna play perfectly this year. And btw, Cas looks really weird without the trench coat, but so hot, though. And did Crowley call him Cassie? So very much Crowley. Gotta love the guy.
And since when is Satan so stupid? It was obvious Rowena was going to trick you. Come on. You are supposed to be smarter than that. Wonder whether he will continue aging rock stars. Btw, Rowena's "You thought Keith Richards was bad, try Iggy pop" was hilarious.
I love that Mary and Dean have that much in common. I get Sam got Mary's hair and Dean Mary's appetite and taste of music. Makes you think about genetics. Dean spent more time with John and he's much more alike to Mary, and Sam was always John's favorite.
That bike has to be a foreshadowing. I guess it's Mr Ketch's who is already following them. We'll see that in next episodes.
Loved this MOTW episode. that ending with the kids was very touching. Loved that they didn't vanished but turn into light and ascend to Heaven. So sweet. Now, the ghosts find peace.
And that heartbreaking ending. I can't believe Mary just left. "I need more time", come on Mary, your boys haven't seen you since they were babies and you just leave? Poor Dean!!! He didn't open to her because he was afraid it wouldn't last and then she confirmed it. This is the worst thing you could do to Dean aka the king of abandonment issues. Now he's not gonna open to anyone. That was so painful. I don't blame him for not hugging her. She should've never done this to the boys.
I get the feeling she's gonna be tricked by Lucifer somehow like he telling her he can bring John back or sth.
Let's see how this works out now that the boys are heartbroken. Emotional episode this one.
Well, that certainly turned DARKER rather quickly. Vanya's new beau is at the least a next level stalker, possibly a serial killer, or, on a long shot, also "special" or, has knowledge of Vanya's suppressed (since childhood) abilities, which makes her either hella dangerous, thus the suppression, or part of Daddy dearest's diabolical experiment to see what happens if you take a "special" child, and tell them they aren't worth bothering about, until they lose any and all confidence in themselves. I REALLY hope she's dangerous, cuz, otherwise, Papa needed killin' real good.
Diego has got guilt transference down really good. Kills his own "Mom" and makes Luther feel bad about wanting to shut her down. Abandons the family and turns it to "well, why did you stay, the problem is YOU". Douche. Even when his Detective Ex girlfriend / booty call FINALLY does what he's been egging her on all along to do, breaks protocol, and pays the price, he transfers the blame to HER, asking "Why didn't you wait for me? I was coming?" Dude has MAJOR issues.
What if Vanya IS the cause of the end??? Just sayin'.
Yes, Sheehan has basically been doing a glammed up Nathan, but then he always plays some version of that character since Misfits IMO.
"Ein Fehler in der Matrix"
Dark. The show that will make you use your brain more than you've done in years. I really missed the feeling of confusion this show gives. If my mind had subtitles when watching the show, I don't know if I'd even understand what I thought.
Let's try to recap. So, mirror universe, Martha is Jonas, Mikkel is alive, Franziska changed places with Elizabeth, Ulrich is still cheating, Katharina has a new look and divorced Ulrich, Bartosz has long hair and looks like the kid of a wealthy family, Erik's still missing, Kilian is dating Martha, Regina is dead and Jonas' more confused than he's even been before.
Also, I couldn't help but laughing with the long shot of two-eyed Wöller and that slow zoom out showing he's missing a limb. Over my laughter, all I thought was "damn, writers! I want to know the story behind his eye". I always thought it was supposed to be important for the plot and, at that moment, I thought it was gonna be nothing. And then they showed us Helge missing an eye instead of his ear and I thought that the eye, somehow, is still important.
Also, if Mikkel doesn't travel back, Ulrich doesn't, so, who destroys Hemge's eye, in this case?
Now, one thing I loved was the weird generation trio. Traveling together with yourself from different generations and killing people in the process with choreographed gestures sounds like a nice trip. The trio crepped me out but somehow I was drawn to it. Like I need to see them more often. The kid freaked me out. He doesn't even blink! And I loved how he and the old version just made the same gesture at the same time.
I just recall that Noah said the same exact words to Helge as middle-aged trio said to Bernd. "Nothing is in vain. Not a single breath. Not a single step. Not a single word. Not pain. An eternal miracle of the One"
I loved that the ending confirmed my suspections last season. Young Jonas was given two choices: stay with Martha or follow Adam. He chose the former and Alt-Martha brought him to Alt-World. Buuuuut Fremder Jonas doesn't know she's not the real Martha because he's never been to Alt-Wolrd soooo, we've got two different timeliness with one Jonas traveling and meeting Alt-Martha (which will turn out to be Eve) and Fremder Jonas traveling supposedly following Adam. And this is only the first episode.
Do you know what's sad about Ulrich and Hannah? That no matter the universe, Ulrich never says "I love you" back to her. I get that Hannah was a manipulative bitch in our universe, but she seemed sweet in this one. I can't believe I just said that. Also, instead of rich and Hannah I want to know more about Egon and Hannah. I really need to know what happened then.
I'm no expert on pregnancies but Hannah looked very pregnant. Maybe it's twins? Agnes und Noah? I don't know. My theory that everyone is a Nielsen will still be real until they tell me it's not. But after Elizabeth being her own grandmother, I can believe anything. Well, that or that she gives birth to the creepy trio.
Overall, great episode. Quiet for a change but it's just the beginning and the mirroring is just so compelling to me. I'm not so sure about the whole whoosp thing to tell us when the worlds change. But let's see. I could be talking for hours and hours but I've made a commitment with myself to just watch an episode a day. Otherwise, I'll feel guilty once I finish it.
This show's something else. There's so much to unpack each episode and I'm 100% sure that, if someone had seen my face during this episode would've been worried about me.
Am I the only one who paused for like 10 minutes when the family tree appeared and was like, wtf does all of this mean? I've always struggled with generations, family trees and guessing who's who. No matter the language. Even in my native one. And so I needed to make sure I understood all the connections before moving onto the ending.
Another show would've just saved the family tree for later in the season but not Dark. I can't believe that they gave us the whole family tree from two different worlds and it's just episode 2!!! This show is on a whole norther level.
I always suspected that Agnes' husband was important somehow, but he's the key to everything. Holy Molly! If we know who Tronte's father is... Damn, this show!
So, let's summarize my thoughts 'cause otherwise I'll drive myself nuts. Noah's father is Bartosz together with a Silja, who, I'm guessing, is the girl from the future. So that means that Bartosz was killed by his own son and had an affair with Martha, who's Turan out to be his second cousin twice removed (or something) and his own great grand daughter in alternate world. Seriously, my head hurts.
I remember that I was always curious to know who Tronte's dad was and in my recent re-watch of the season, I remember Agnes saying that Tronte's dad was a priest. So, I'm guessing, maybe Peter? I don't know. Maybe I'm reading too much into it.
One of the bits I'm loving the most is the generation trio. I'm both mesmerized and terrified by them. It's so weird to explain.
Ulrich and Katharina. My heart hurts. It was really touching and it hurt me more than I expected. Old Ulrich actor is AMAZING. You can see the pain in his eyes. I still remember the day when I thought it was just the same actor with make-up on. This is seriously one of my favorite scenes on the show.
I've always been against adults terrifying children or just even pushing them, but when Katharina pushed young Hannah against the wall and told her to keep her hands off of Ulrich and Mikkel I was like, there you go girl!!!
And that poor Claudia's secretary! Did anyone else think she was pregnant? Poor girl. I loved the scene when she told Tronte that everything started with that white-haired woman and her dog. Like, go Gretchen! She definitely has a part to play.
And the father of the year award was to Tronte. I can't believe how messed up this show is. In order to save Regina, Claudia has to ask Tronte to kill their daughter in order to push Claudia to be more focused and save everyone.
Also, how the hell did Tronte survive the apocalypse? He wasn't even in the bunker. And young Noah talking to Elizabeth. Something tells me that Elizabeth would be the one killing her father. This is one relationship I'm looking forward to getting to know more about.
I like how YOU is showing Joe’s twisted logic. He thinks it’s wrong to manipulate & stalk but then does the same thing.
(Spoilers)
Says he’s trying to keep Candace safe from predators but Joe is a predator.
I also like how Beck’s only redeeming qualities are also twisted. She is smart & talented but then goes completely against it because she doesn’t want to be a good person or be happy. Choosing partying, social media , alcohol etc over writing or being a decent person.
Then there’s Joe who thinks he can magically fix people. He acts superior but is completely delusional.
He’s pathological & sick. The one good thing he did was go to therapy but he still chose obsession over trying to put an end to the terrible behaviour.
I’m glad Paco told Beck about the hiding spot but things don’t look good for her. Gotta say that scene was creepier than I thought it would be. I just assumed he was hiding a few creepy pictures or something.
He’s probably going to kill her (while blaming her of course). Then find a different girl to obsess over. Or, he can keep her in a cage...Jesus.
Compelling show and Penn does a great job. I feel really bad for Paco. Also, I like Karen so I’m glad she got out in one piece.
[7.6/10] This episode was an odd combination of roundly satisfying and overly pat. You could feel the show going for the clockwork ending, with all of its disparate storylines coming together in one big bundle. The connections between them are solid enough, but the final answers feel a little too easy for a series that was grappling with some big questions.
And yet, ultimately I like its answers, which provides a little cushion. Sure, there’s something a little convenient about Adam’s regular friends managing to defeat his four horsemen friends simply by saying what they really believe in (and using Aziraphale’s lost flaming sword). But the fact that, in the end, both Heaven and Hell (a.) aim to start the war to end all wars because it suits their ends and (b.) don’t know whether that’s part of the “ineffable plan” anymore than the humans do, is an interesting place to land.
So is the turn away from both Heaven and Hell and turn toward humanity, represented by Aziraphale and Crowley recognizing Adam as not the incarnate of either place, but as the incarnate of humanity, something that both angel and demon have come to appreciate given their time on Earth. There’s an existentialist bent to that idea which I find really interesting, which culminates in Adam using his “will it to reality” powers to make it so that Satan, his absentee father, is no longer his “real dad,” but that the man who raised him for the last eleven years is. There’s powerful symbolism is that too, which feels like either Gaiman or Pratchett or somebody exercising a more personal type of demon through the story.
And yet, it’s something I think I like more as an idea than as the end of the story, where Good Omens gets very direct and declaratory about its themes and messages in a way that feels overly tidy, even for a show that mostly wore its thoughts on its sleeves. You’d be hard-pressed to walk away from this season finale without getting what the show is trying to say, with the Voice of God filling in the details just in case. (Don’t get me started on the cheesiness of the whole thing building to Adam being trapped in a garden and deciding to steal an apple, replete with on-the-nose voiceover dialogue about what that symbolizes.)
Still, as the cap to a lot of disparate storytelling threads, I actually found it a pretty satisfying answer to the questions the show had been raising, even if it felt like we had a fair bit of fluff between the beginning and the end to get there. What I was less on board with was the way the show spent another half hour trying to end things and do what amounted to an epilogue.
Again, Adam’s bit with the garden was too cornball for my taste. I still don’t especially care about Anathema and Pulcifer, and their burning the new book of predictions felt too heavy on the symbolism once more. I’ll admit to being charmed by the sweetness of Madame Tracy and Stadwell ending up together, but I’m tempted to place that more on the supreme comedic talents of Michael McKean and Miranda Richardson than on a romance that’s been pretty underfed. (I’ll also throw a shout out to Jon Hamm here, who’s been unexpectedly shaky for much of the season, but who absolutely nailed the “I try to seem like a nice person, but I’m actually a domineering douchebag deep down” vibe in this episode.)
Still, as Good Omens must, in the end it comes down to Crowley and Aziraphale. Their switching bodies and/or faces was a bit of an obvious feint, but still led to an amusing moment when one steps into the hellfire and the other bathes in the holy water. It’s not as clever a twist as the show seemed to think, even if there’s perhaps no greater bit of commentary than the two realms working together to slay the newly-minted outsiders whose sole bit of treachery is averting the end of the world.
All that said, the two of them as good friends is just a surprisingly sweet note to end on, even if their final conversation is filled with portents of what’s to come and more pat statements about what was. Overall, this show rises and falls and what they’re given to do, and the performances of Michael Sheen and David Tennant that elevate the proceedings at every turn.
As a whole, this season had a decent amount of filler or less interesting stories, but was buoyed considerably by the characters and performers it put at the center of the narrative. It had an ending that felt too neat and then overextended by the end, but which had something laudable to say. And it offered tons of striking, often gorgeous images, without always knowing what to do with it. For a first season, Good Omens gave me more things that I liked than that I loved, but Tennant and Sheen, and Crowley and Aziraphale, are unique and compelling enough to keep me coming back.
I can't fully put into words how much I love this show. This season was stellar. Start to finish. You can fight me on this but I won't budge.
I binged the season so I couldn't really put a review up per episode - in other words, I was lazy and needed to continue watching - so let's dive into the season here.
First off; the transition from Vanya to Viktor was so well written, so beautifully executed it left me bawling multiple times. It felt incredibly natural and fitting in the story. We got to know Vanya as a woman who never belonged or fitted in until she met Sissy and it all came together. I like how the other characters reacted to it. Not over the top. Very in line with the characters and how they all previously interacted with him.
2; The relationship between Diego and Lila was such a highlight this season. I remember last season I had mixed feelings about her but this season I fell in love with her and the relationship she has with Diego.
3; The Sparrows are incredible and I truly hope we get them back next season. I need to know what Christopher is and how Alfonso became so... well... ugly. I want to know more about Fei and if she was born without eyes or lost them somewhere and how.
4; How did Luther go from 'meh' to 'please no don't kill Luther!'. Sloane is good for him. Those two are adorable.
5; Klaus. That's all. Klaus. He is magic.
6; [spoiler] Will we get 2 Ben's next season? Diving into the post credit scene here but we saw Sparrow Ben come back with the Umbrella's through the Hotel Obsidiaan/Oblivion elevator but we definitely saw a different Ben - our Ben I guess - on the train.
7; Allison does not deserve her happy ending. Again, fight me on this but she was so crap this season. She assaulted Luther, killed Harlan - who was just precious in my opinion - and the way she put the blame on Viktor was unfair. Also how is Ray there?
This season was fun, mysterious and emotional. It's vibing on a whole other level and I'm all for it. The weirdness, the way it makes me feel like it's okay to be different... it's very personal for me. Here's hoping to season 4.
9.1/10
This was a pretty great episode. There was a strong visual theme of markings, typically with letters, whether it's "JSS" or "W" or a Scarlett Letter-esque "A". My natural inclination is to go philosophical and interpret these markings in the shadow of the Scarlet A the show's writers seemed to be referencing. The protagonist of that novel was marked because she had transgressed society's bounds and was treated as stained because of it. Much of this episode had to do with people questioning or running from the ways in which they felt stained by their past actions, what the fall of society had made them into. "We didn't choose" say the wolves. We were made into this, and in many ways it's true, but that doesn't stop folks like Carol from questioning how she's been marked and what that means.
And her opposing force is Morgan, who, as depicted in the final shot, is walking the opposite direction. Morgan is Batman; he's a badass who doesn't want to kill anyone; he just wants to keep going. I loved his scenes; I loved his hesitance to kill, and I loved his juxtaposition with Carol. Carol is probably the show's best character, and the scenes depicting her feeling the weight of the things she's done, the hard woman she's turned into, were powerful and heartbreaking. Morgan is the yin to her yang, desperately trying to hold onto his humanity thrust into a world that practically invites you to become a monster. It was stellar work in terms of the writing, the production and direction, and especially from both actors.
I also loved the little short story film with Enid that served as the intro. This show often works best when it tells stories using images rather than dialogue, and there was some great visual storytelling here. I especially liked the editing, where right before the terror or violence was about to begin, it would jump cut to the aftermath -- not because I'm against depicting violence, but because it was more effective her to imply what was happening. I also appreciated the image of Enid eating the turtle, looking just like the zombie that eats her parents. Again, it's a powerful visual statement that shows what the world has turned these people into.
I also loved the white-knuckle excitement of the Wolves' invasion. It was all well-shot with a number of exciting set pieces. It was a very well-structured episode, with the first third or so letting us see where everyone is settling in back in Alexandria and reestablishing the setting, before all hell breaks loose. The Wolves' arrival was a hell of a twist, and it dovetailed surprisingly well with the end of last week's episode.
The show overall has gotten better about its "divide and conquer" storytelling technique. With a cast this big, it's easy for folks to get lost in the shuffle (note the thin characterization the show had to give some of the generic Alexandrians so that it would mean something, even something slight, when they were killed by the Wolves), but by splitting everyone up and showing how their stories impact each other, it gives more time to develop the characters, and makes those moments where the stories intersect cooler and more meaningful.
It wasn't all great, though. I did appreciate the new doctor's struggles, and I'm a big Eugene fan, but the story was a little too neat given the setup. There's still a lot of speechifying going on in this show (Rosita's was especially groanworthy), and while Ron dealing with his father's death and anger at his mother for it could be fertile teritory for the show to explore, the teenaged actors just weren't up to the subtle love triangle angle with Ron, Carl, and Enid. It was pretty low level Dawson's Creek stuff. The same goes for a pretty on-the-nose "I don't know how to shoot a gun, I'm not a warrior" bit with Deanna and Spencer.
Still, this was a stellar episode that, through impeccable pacing managed to balance some character development, a thrilling series of action scenes, and some quality thematic resonance with various characters wondering whether they or others have been debased into becoming killers, or whether it's just people doing what's necessary. The leftover casserole Carol mentions, and then makes, is a symbolic reminders of what they're trying to do out there, use whatever's left and try to make it into something worthwhile. One of the show's better outings in recent memory.
