I have been a fan of the mentalist from day 1. And I have always loved this show deeply. What I never understood was why they would go through when the "red line" of the show has ended. To me the strong episodes were mostly the Red John episodes the ones where you could really see Patrick Jane as a normal human being. I was very disappointed when they revealed Red John always felt like it was supposed to be some else entirely. (Still think it should've been Bret Styles!) I would have been ok with this ending right after the revealing of the Red John episode. But no they had to put 1,5 season more into it. Which I don't understand. Season 7, although the ending is the ending this show truly deserves!, has no added value to the whole series. I was hoping that they would reveal that they didn't catch Red John but it was never about that anymore, that storyline was over. And to have us like Vega and Wylie and then kill Vega off just doesn't do this show justice as we have seen many amazing episodes in the past. If you watch the 1st episode of the Mentalist you know you don't have to be a psychic to see that Lisbon and Jane are meant for each other. The nice things about a well planned finale is having old faces come back again. I really didn't like the departure of van Pelt and Rigsby and was really happy to see that they returned for the final 2 episodes of this show. Also the final 3 episodes were finally up to the high mentalist standard that we've grown to love over the years.
W..T..F. just happened. Did they just kill #&$%@? First Carter and now #$&%@. I still love the series, its one of the best action series but they are pushing it. This aint the Walking Dead.
(via TV Blaze for WP)
I bought that Lincoln wanted to get out of the old SSR base. I bought that he believed in Daisy, and that after seeing Talbot and the way he was being treated by Shield, that he would be more amenable to breaking out and chasing after her. I believed his puppy dog eyes and his anger and his "I was only ever hear for you" routine.
And that's a good thing! Too often, this show's beats, plot developments, and even lines are too predictable. It's pleasant to have a show like AoS be able to successfully misdirect you now and again. Granted, part of that stems from the fact that Lincoln has been written as something of an idiot who would be the exact type of person to get suckered in by a feint from Daisy, but still. That's using the audience's expectations in your favor, and that's a good thing.
The downside is that at the end of the day, I just don't care about Daisy and Lincoln as a couple. Does anyone? There have to be some people out ther who think it's a good idea, right? I just can't get over their lack of chemistry, or the way it feels like the two of them are just going through the motions. This was the most convincing Lincoln has ever been in his affections for Daisy, and it was all, ostensibly, a deception. Now maybe you can handwave it based on the principle that he was using his real emotions about missing Daisy to deceive her, but still, it's tough to center the big twist in an episode on a relationship that the audience has trouble buying into.
What's strange is that the show has done particularly well at setting up other relationships. Fitz and Simmons barely get any time to be romantic with one another in this episode, and yet even Fitz's little comment about whether Simmons is free for an hour is just cute enough, and their chemistry is so perfect, that it's enough to buoy an otherwise tense moment. At the same time, Mack and Elena have probably spent a grand total of about 15 minutes on screen together over the course of three episodes, and yet I'm truly rooting for them.
Part of that is just the alchemy of two actors finding the right vibe together, and you can't coach that or write it or direct it; it just sort of happens. But much of it is in the writing and the performances. We see Mack and Elena coming from different places and having common ground. We see Mack being something approaching a Shield lifer, whereas Elena is just getting started. We see Elena being a woman of supreme faith, with Mack questioning his. Nevertheless, they clearly have empathy and affection for one another despite their differing points of view, and it makes them feel closer and more relatable for it.
Coulson and Talbot, on the other hand, are not especially close. Talbot is finally let into the new Shield HQ without being blindfolded or otherwise hoodwinked on his way, as Coulson let's him see behind the curtain. Talbot, of course, doesn't like what he sees -- a hotheaded Inhuman, a monster kept in a box, and lots of information about Hive and Daisy that Coulson isn't particularly forthright with.
In the wake of all of this, we get a bit of Civil War redux. It's a laudable attempt to meld AoS with its cinematic counterparts, even though the film side of the MCU has little interest in coordinating with the plebs on the boob tube. Again, you have to more or less handwave why The Avengers aren't involved with Hive, but that's firmly within the confines of acceptable willing suspension of disbelief, and having Talbot as the effective representative of the Sokovia Accords is a nice way to, at a minimum, inject some of the ideas and themes of the latest Captain America film into the show.
Talbot, for his part, represents some legitimate concerns. The Inhumans have done some pretty severe damage. Not being able to keep track of powered people means that folks like Daisy can be out there and dangerous with no supervision and limited control, putting everyone, even the highly trained Shield agents, at risk. On the other hand, Coulson's not out of line when he says that he's kept lists like that in the past and he's seen where they lead, and that by the time the government cuts through all the red tape to approve a mission, it may be too late to stop someone like Hive. He even does a good job of trying to distinguish Shield from The Avengers by noting that the more prominent superhero team is a very public group, whereas Shield is, at least nominally, supposed to operate in the shadows.
Sometimes that type of operation leads to taking steps that the higher ups in the government wouldn't appreciate, like sending one monster to take out another. The whole Lash thing has been pretty hit or miss in my book. I love the dichotomy of Andrew Garner having to balance his real persona with this force within him, and yet having a roided up Sonic the Hedgehog roaming around with his chintzy forehead prosthetics didn't do much for me. The idea that every Inhuman has a destiny and a purpose and that Lash's was to save Daisy makes me wonder why he had to kill all of those other Inhumans to achieve that goal. It also makes me wonder why he didn't make more of an effort to kill the guy who was making more Inhumans before he went all Florence Nightingale on Miss Johnson.
But that, I suppose, would have deprived us of two more episodes where we get to see the Shield team do battle with Hive and take on his "primitive Inhumans" who seemed like mild versions of the Putties the Power Rangers used to fight. It would also deprive us of a brief but emotional scene of May mourning the man she loves, and of Shield getting its protagonist back on the side of the good guys where the big villain (not to mention his Gambit-inspired henchman) are still out there to fight.
But that's the other side of the twist. Surprises are nice, but if you look back at them and discover that the narrative loop-de-loops were just a means to move the pieces around the board so that they're ready for the next big event, the twist still seems cool, but also a bit hollow. It's nice to see some growth from Lincoln, that he can be a team player even when it involves his girlfriend and he's smart enough not to trust someone under Hive's "sway" no matter how much he might want to. It's nice to see Talbott at least halfway understand Coulson's position and give him enough leash to do what he needs to do. It's nice to see Elena hand Mack the infamous necklace (in what's probably a fake out) that seems to spell doom.
At the end of the day, however, this all has to amount to something. Too often, Agents of Shield is just a series of semi-cool moments and action movie trailer one-liners, without enough connective tissue or narrative momentum to hold them together. I enjoyed those moments for the most part in this episode, but I'm still waiting to see if they'll add up to something greater.
Evil Katie Cassidy with black lipstick, dressed in leather? Sign me the hell up! I loved her!
My poor baby Caitlin. I'm glad she's back with the team. She, Barry and Cisco had a really nice moment with the group hug. The original trio of nerds back together, as it should be.
"This is the part where I play stupid and you explain the science."
That's it. That's the show in a nutshell.
A lot of good lines in this episode. Very quotable.
"- I didn't know you cared, Detective.
- Yes, you did."
That was a nice spin on the clichéd "I don't" response. Joe is a gift to this world.
I love how Cisco and Harry are BFFs now. Their relationship is super fun to watch.
Barry and Iris are adorable. I didn't really like the idea of those two together in season 1. I thought that their childhood-friends dynamic with the boy inevitably falling in love with the girl was kind of unoriginal and boring. Now I'm starting to like them. I still wouldn't mind Barry and Caitlin together, though. Grant Gustin is a magical actor who has chemistry with everyone.
I wish I could get my hands on Zoom right now. Damn, leave Barry alone! That puppy of a person has been through enough. He deserves some happiness for once.
If all doppelgangers are mirror reflections of each other, does this mean that 90% of the population on Earth 2 are left-handed?
Wow. This episode was insane. Let's hope the finale is even better.
Harold casually strolling into an NSA facility to upload a super virus. I've never thought he was capable of pulling something like that off, but I love this darker version of him.
The simulations were my favorite part of the episode. It was interesting to see what the characters' lives would look like without The Machine. I'm thrilled that we got to see evil Root again. It made me realize (not for the first time) just how phenomenal Root's character development had been.
To quote Harold himself: "Anyone who looks on the world as if it were a game of chess deserves to lose". Samaritan's going down! But I hate the way they handled Greer's death, to be honest. He didn't deserve to die on his own terms. I wanted Shaw to kill him, preferably in a very painful, very creative way that would've made Game of Thrones look family-friendly in comparison. I wanted him to watch Samaritan burn. Why can't we have nice things?
I need to start preparing myself for next week. Don't get me wrong, I love all the main characters, but if Root's the only one to die this season, I will be bitter forever. I'm expecting a bloodbath, and I hope the writers don't disappoint me.
I love October. You can practically hear all of my favorite shows coming back from hiatus.
This was a really good episode. Like, really good. Thankfully, Superman didn't overshadow Supergirl at all. I'd been worried that that might happen - the media had been massively overhyping his appearance on the show before the season started, but he didn't steal Kara's spotlight, for which I'm grateful. Tyler and Melissa work so well together. It was a pleasure to watch their characters interact.
Lena Luthor seems pretty cool. I hope to see more of her soon.
Cat Grant is absolutely fantastic. I love her. What a shame that Calista is no longer a series regular. Kara and Cat's relationship is a delight to watch.
Kara and James didn't even last one episode, which is hilarious. Honestly, I'm glad. Let Kara focus on herself before you put her in a relationship.
We also got yet another British villain, the first glimpse of Project Cadmus and Alex Danvers kicking some bad guy ass (hell yeah!).
After a pretty shaky start and some serious improvement in season 1, Supergirl is now a well-balanced superhero show and also one of my personal favorites. And boy, am I glad that they moved it to the CW. To be honest, I didn't know what to think when I heard the news back in May, but it worked out extremely well. The pacing and the flow of the episode were significantly better than what we'd got used to in season 1. The dialogues were better. The editing was better. The atmosphere was better. Supergirl has always been charming, colorful and fun, and now all these qualities seem to have been amplified somehow. If this episode was any indication of how the rest of the season is going to look like, we're in for a treat. And I couldn't be more excited.
What a fun episode. Last season this show was a mess - vibrant, fast-paced, thoroughly entertaining mess, but a mess nonetheless. Now it seems a lot better for some reason. Maybe it's because they got rid of Carter and Kendra, who were by far the dullest characters on the show.
The story was actually really good. We got everything in this episode, from dinosaurs to Nazis. The writing was okay, the special effects were cool, I don't really have any complaints.
Stein's excitement over meeting Einstein was adorable.
Leave it to Sara Lance to flirt with a woman while she's being sentenced to death for "corrupting" women. Oh, Sara. Never change. I'm still hoping for a happy ending for you and Nyssa someday, but your shenanigans are hilarious.
I wish Sara had killed Damien Darhk. Then we could pretend that season 4 of Arrow never happened.
"- I'm here, Captain.
- You always are."
Damn it, Legends of Tomorrow. Ever since Person of Interest ended, I've thought I'd never care about an AI again, but here I am.
And Rip's speech at the end of the episode? Excuse me while I go throw myself off a cliff. I can't handle the feels.
The golden rule of the Arrowverse: if someone is fucking with the timeline, you can bet that it's a speedster. Wonderful. As if I didn't have enough reasons to hate Eobard Thawne.
This episode fucked with my head. I'm having a hard time trying to figure out which events were real and which were only a simulation.
I'm always a sucker for a May-centric episode. All her fight scenes were awesome. But the ending made me tear up a bit. Radcliffe is such an asshole, playing with her head like that. I can't wait for her to wake up and kick his ass all the way back to Scotland.
I love Mack and Elena. I absolutely love them. Their height difference gives me life. And when I saw that scene at the beginning with the two of them having a post-sex pillow talk, the first thing that popped into my head was "Oh, so that's why they moved the show to 10 PM".
Thank God, Fitz wasn't obsessing over Aida, he was looking for proof that Radcliffe was the real bad guy. I'm so happy. I was afraid that the writers were trying to break FitzSimmons up or some shit.
I feel bad for LMD May. I really do. It must be so horrible to realize that you're not real, that you're only alive because some crazy scientist stole someone else's life. Am I the only one getting strong Dollhouse vibes from this?
And the "Thanks for reminding me how definitely not straight I am" award goes to Daisy in a fucking pantsuit. That was such a good look.
I liked it better when the four DC shows aired on four different nights, but whatever. I guess the people at the CW wanted to boost the ratings by airing Legends after The Flash.
I can't believe that they made an episode about the Legends trying to convince George Lucas to become a movie director. That is so wild. I love it. And there were so many awesome references to Star Wars, like "You're our only hope" and the trash compactor.
Rip forgot who he is and to be honest, I hope he won't remember anytime soon. I like the team as it is.
Every now and again I randomly remember that Arthur Darvill played Rory Williams on Doctor Who. Apparently, he was destined to play characters travelling through time and space on a ship.
It was such a small moment, but I love the trope of a super intense scene with people running or fighting cutting to a shot of someone riding in an elevator with soft music in the background. It always makes me laugh, no matter how many times I've seen it.
"- I have an idea.
- So this would be a new milestone for you then."
Professor Stein went in and took no prisoners, huh? How did Mick manage to recover from such a savage burn?
New favorite episode this season. Hands down.
Alex going rogue and just beating the shit out of Cadmus people was so good to watch. I loved every second of it. And don't you dare tell me that she did it for the wrong reasons. Alex Danvers is the biggest Slytherin to ever Slytherin. At the end of the day, family comes first. That's just who she is. And it doesn't make her a bad person or a bad agent.
Maggie was on my screen for more than 20 seconds! Merry fucking Christmas to me! She's apparently gotten much better at pool, too. And she wanted an actual flash grenade for winning? What a dorky badass. I'd die for her.
"- I wish I had what you two have.
- Go away, Brian."
Am I still laughing? Yes. Yes, I am.
Also, Alex is Maggie's "ride or die". They are such a good team, working together seamlessly, kicking ass and supporting each other through everything. My little gay heart can't handle Sanvers. And Alex would definitely make an excellent arm candy.
Look at that, Kara had her own storyline! And a moral dilemma! And it was about journalism! So much yes. I'm super mad about her getting fired, though. Snapper had better hire her back soon. Remember when working at CatCo was an integral part of Kara's storyline and she said she couldn't be Supergirl without her job keeping her grounded? Good times.
Kara biting her lip while talking to Lena? Supergirl saving Lena and carrying her in her arms? I'm not saying it's gay, but it's so gay. And it's also an interesting, healthy, respectful relationship. Do the writers really think we'd rather see Karamel happen than Supercorp?
"Maybe being Supergirl and having you is enough."
Okay, here's the plan: we go home, we vomit. Then we book the next flight to Vancouver, get into the writers' room and ask them what the fuck they're doing. They should ask themselves "What would Cat Grant say about this?". Because she would definitely disapprove.
But yeah, aside from that one garbage moment this episode was awesome. And that scene between Kara and Alex when they were trying to stop the alien ship was raw and epic, and absolutely, utterly spectacular. This is the kind of content that we should get every week.
"- Well, we'll need some stopping power. Too much?
- Not unless you're going grocery shopping in Texas."
What an ending! They seriously need to stop arresting Jessica. It seems that she ends up in handcuffs every damn season. It's becoming a weird tradition.
I love that even in the middle of a blazing hot summer, Jessica still wears heavy boots and her leather jacket everywhere. Hey, I get it. She needs to maintain that dark aesthetic. I just think it's super funny.
Vido is such a cute kid, and I enjoy his dynamic with Jessica so much. I'm pretty meh about Oscar for now. We'll see what they do with his character.
Jeri's storyline is breaking my heart. And giving me major anxiety because I can imagine doing exactly the same if I were in her situation.
Can Pryce just fuck off already? I despise the guy.
This show is filled with heavy themes and storylines, but Jessica's fear of becoming the monster that this other lady is hit me especially hard. I was almost in tears when she kept saying "That's not me". That's what Oscar got wrong about her: she's not a misanthrope. She may not have the patience to deal with other people's bullshit, and she may not be a particularly nice person, but she wants to protect people. That's what led to her brief stint as a superhero. And after all the shit she's been through, her first instinct is still to save others. I just have a lot of feelings about Jessica Jones, okay? She deserves the world.
I have to say, mad props to the writers for never dancing around what Kilgrave did to Jess and calling it what it was: rape. Remember, kids, sex without explicit consent is always rape. It shouldn't even need to be said in goddamn 2018, but looking at what's happening in the world and everything that went down in Hollywood in the last few months, some people just still don't get it.
The show is back on our screens and our heroes are back on Earth! That scene where the team stopped for a second to just enjoy the sun and the fresh air was so beautiful to me. They spent so much time trapped inside a crowded, grim space, so getting to go outside (and more importantly, actually having an outside to go to) must have felt so good. It left the biggest smile on my face.
Deke is alive! It caught me by surprise. His reactions to everything around him were so precious and hilarious. If I were in his shoes, I think I'd hug trees too.
Daisy Johnson in a suit is a sight that I was not prepared for and I pretty much flatlined as soon as I saw her. Damn, girl. How is it even possible for one person to be so attractive? Like, we get it. Tone it down, please. It's bad for my heart.
Piper, you traitorous bastard. You should know better than to trust the military. Did she really expect them to treat Coulson's team fairly? Come on. They want Coulson's head on a stick. They won't be satisfied with anything less.
YoYo getting her arms cut off was traumatic. I did not expect it to happen, I thought Kasius was the one who did that. What a plot twist. I hope Fitz designs some sick prosthetics for her like he did with Coulson.
Ruby seemed so out of place at the beginning of the episode, I couldn't imagine how a moody teen was supposed to fit into the storyline. Now that I know, I'm emotionally scarred for life. Thanks, I hate it. General Hale is just a fucking delight, isn't she? I can't believe I'm saying this, but I miss Talbot. At least he didn't keep his kid locked up in a cell.
Carl Creel? They're really bringing back a lot of old storylines, aren't they? We've already had Gravitonium and T.A.H.I.T.I. this season, and now this. And we also got the team recounting all the horrible things that happened to them, including Simmons jumping out of the Bus in "FZZT" to save the team, FitzSimmons getting dropped to the bottom of the ocean by Ward at the end of season 1, and May being forced to dance in that sparkly, silver dress in season 2 (that made me snicker).
Did anyone else caught Noah saying something about an Asgardian spotted on Earth? That's gotta be Thor when he came looking for Odin at the beginning of Ragnarok, right? I kind of like the fact that they're only making very small references to the movies now, since the movies don't acknowledge this show's existence in any way, why should it be the other way around?
Good episode overall, I'm pumped to see where we're gonna go from here. See you next week!
HAPPY 100TH EPISODE, EVERYONE!
I just want to say this: I'm so happy, so proud and so, so grateful. I've been in love with this show since I first started watching it 3.5 years ago. The fact that we're here today celebrating this wonderful milestone is a privilege, one that I wasn't sure we'd get this time last year. Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. has defied the odds time and time again. There has been so much working against it: backlash from hardcore Marvel fans way back when it started; ratings getting lower year after year; ABC itself not giving a shit about it, dumping it first in their worst slot at 10 PM on Tuesdays, and then moving it to Fridays, where most shows go to die; finally, having a completely undeserved reputation of the bastard child of the MCU. Despite all of that, it's still going strong, reaching new creative heights with every season, giving us awesome content, and keeping us on the edge of our seats. Maybe it never quite became the smash hit that Marvel surely expected it to be, but all of us who have stuck with it through thick and thin know just how special it is. "We have a small but active fanbase", indeed.
This episode was beautiful. I don't even know where to start. I think I'll just make a list of everything that stood out to me, it'll help me organize my thoughts a little:
Daisy and Coulson's relationship is absolutely incredible. I started crying as soon as Daisy teared up and I didn't really stop until the end of the episode. Chloe Bennet broke my heart. She's come such a long way since the pilot and grown so much as an actress.
Fake Deathlok trying to convince Phil that it's all in his head gave me major anxiety, mostly because for one horrifying second I imagined them ending the show like this. Just "psych! It was a fantasy all along!". They wouldn't do that, right? RIGHT???
Real Deathlok showed up! Yet another old character to have come back this season!
I saw a theory circulating around Tumblr that Deke is a descendant of FitzSimmons. I was sceptical. But guess what, it's true! Which means there are some cute, genius FitzSimmons babies coming! It does raise some questions, though. They'll have to send Deke back to the future eventually, right? Will he even exist if the team saves the world, or will he get erased? As usual with the time traveling stuff, my head hurts.
Goddamn. FitzSimmons. Wedding. This was where I went from low-key crying to just straight-up bawling. They couldn't have chosen anything better to celebrate the 100th episode with. It was perfect. The setting, Coulson marrying them, their vows... Jemma looked stunning, Fitz looked so handsome (shame about that kilt though, I think they should've gone for it), Elizabeth and Iain's acting was out of this world, as usual. I'm so happy for those two nerds.
What an emotional rollercoaster. I need to lie down for a bit. Huge, huge congratulations to everyone involved in the show, the whole cast and crew. I hope they know that they've created something extraordinary. And I hope that cake they had in celebration of the 100th episode was delicious.
I wasn’t surprised by the cannibalism. They said there was only enough food for a certain number of people so that left few options.
I get that there was little choice for that dark year; however, it doesn’t justify Octavia for burning the farm. After the cannibalism you’d think she and everyone else would be desperate to protect it.
Seems like Octavia has become a full on dictator. I really hate what the writers/producers have done with her character. Every season I think ‘man she’s an idiot’. She’s the most annoying character and every year she gets worse.
Clarke flips back and forth as always and I just wish for the sake of character development she and the others who change their minds lot to stop. Pick a lane already!
I hope Monty is able to duplicate the algae . I don’t understand though why they were so quick to dismiss him especially after proving he can fix things. They need to go to one of the areas where the land is dead and have Monty spread some of algae then go live with the others. Have them return a year later and see he was wrong - the land is thriving twice as much as expected.
Honestly I hope the writers are considering that for the series.
And after seeing this season so far I hope the show ends soon. Make a plan and make it a great ending. This is just so repetitive and it’s getting ridiculous.
Last season’s finale had me really excited and now I’m losing interest. I think a big part of it is Octavia’s ‘I’m queen of the world’ attitude and stupid choices. But the show also uses the same formula over and over. Think outside the box.
Don't you just love it when a character who's supposed to be from the Balkans not only has her lines captioned as [speaking Russian] (spoiler alert: Russia and the Balkans are nowhere near each other), but the lines themselves are in Polish - terrible Polish, I might add, but Polish nonetheless (also not a language you'd find in the Balkans)? I know the Slav Squad is more or less interchangeable to English speakers, but you'd think they'd at least make an effort to get it right. Unless of course it was a deliberate choice since Deke was the one narrating the story and he probably can't tell the difference, but since the joke would fly over a lot of viewers' heads, my point still stands.
Overall, this was a fun episode that made me laugh out loud a few times, but it also felt... unnecessary, I guess? I like both Mack and Deke just fine, but do I like them enough to have an entire episode dedicated to them? Maybe in a regular season, but definitely not in a short final one. We already have so few episodes left, we didn't need what was essentially a filler that excluded most of the main cast. Throughout the whole thing I couldn't help but think "okay, we've had a few laughs, can we find out how Daisy's doing now?". I did like the fact that it gave Mack time to deal with his grief, but other than that and Sybil getting the Time Streams to Malick it didn't really move the plot along in any significant ways. I know not everyone feels the same way and that's fine, but I'm mostly here for my OG team, so this episode didn't really do it for me. The preview for next week looks insane though.
(Also, if Nathaniel Malick got his powers in '76 and we're in '84 now, that means he's had them longer than Daisy who's only had hers for like 5 years. That should be interesting.)
Now, for your weekly rundown of AoS's greatest hits:
3x17 "The Team"
This one had me on the edge of my seat the whole way through. Trying to guess which Inhuman got infected by Hive was so exciting and Daisy turning out to be the one after a series of clever misdirections was a big fat shocker. I loved how they really kept us guessing the entire episode and the ending still truly surprised me. Plus, Daisy using her seismic blasts or whatever you call them to basically bring down the entire Playground was a very sexy look that I still think about sometimes. It truly had big "mark me down as scared and horny" energy.
"I already have a sister to save. Her name is Jemma Simmons."
Hell fucking yeah! That's my favorite brOTP right there!
What a crazy good episode. Every single scene between Daisy, Mack and Sousa was gold. Mack and Daisy's conversation literally made me wanna cry. I don't want this team to fall apart. But then Mack started teasing Daisy about Sousa, and then he gave Danny boy a big bro pep talk (although with a funny twist with the whole "well then you better get some [intentions]"), and then Sousa made fun of Daisy's superhero name, and I found myself laughing again. I love this show so much. I thought we had two more weeks left, but they're doing a two-part finale next week instead, which I can't deal with. The fact that Agents of SHIELD is ending for good in 7 days is incomprehensible to me.
Also, good to see Iain back, even if it was just for a couple of new flashbacks. I'm calling it now, Jemma and Fitz had a kid while they were working on the time machine. The bloodwork? Could indicate pregnancy. And Jemma "not wanting to leave a part of herself behind"? Could be talking about Fitz, sure, but that memory was almost blank for a reason, probably to hide whatever else was in that room from us. And now Jemma doesn't remember Fitz at all. Thanks, Nathaniel, truly. What an asshole.
The final episode on my all-time favorites list is a very recent one:
7x09 "As I Have Always Been"
When I first started making this list, I left one spot empty just for this reason, just in case season 7 gave us something really great. And while the whole season has just been so good, this episode might be my new favorite of the entire show. Elizabeth is the most talented British pop tart ever, not just as an actor, but as a director. She got these amazing performances out of the cast and she called the shots when it came to the flow of the episode, and I think we can all agree that the pacing of it was brilliant. The editing team did an amazing job too. This episode took the concept of a time loop and made it funny, surprising, tense and heartfelt while maintaining a good balance between all of these components. Not a minute of that episode was wasted, it just went from strength to strength all the way through. It was a masterpiece.
And this concludes my Top 10 SHIELD episodes! See you next week for one last ride, nerds! (I wanna cry just typing this)
I consider this one of the best movies of 2009, and its high up my list of best movies of the decade. It seems this movie came at a perfect time when all over the world but the United States especially people were getting laid off and tens of thousands of people had to look for a new job.
George Clooney plays the man who doesn't want to settle down and he found the perfect job to do it. He flies around America to fire people. While other people just wanna go as fast as possible from point a to b and see the airport as necessarily annoyance he enjoys every second of it. He has a lifestyle that sounds very appealing to me, no complicated relations, job or stuff that holds you down. Just go everywhere you want without thinking about what you leave behind.
Interesting fact: The director Jason Reitman put up an ad in a newspaper asking for anyone who recently got fired to speak about that experience. He told them it was for a documentary. So some of the people we see in the movie are people who actually got fired from their jobs and give a genuine answer to what they said when they were told they were getting fired and what they think is still important in their life.
Update 9/22/16: This was the episode Tatiana used as her Emmy submission and won with.
So my fave ship from Season 1 is finally reunited. Propane (Rachel x Windows), how I've missed thee. Never part again.
And, of course, if something is given, something has to be taken away, so apparently this is goodbye to my dear Beth. I have to say that this season's Beth arc was easily one of my favorite things that has happened on this show. It gave this show the much needed boost it needed after last season's Castor debacle. Sarah seeing Beth again while on the bridge near the train station broke me. When Beth said "We need you." I almost lost it.
The main two questions I need answered now are: Where the hell is Helena? I can understand why she left, but that doesn't explain why we haven't seen her. The woman is pregnant with twins and I need to know she's okay. And of course, is Delphine alive or not? It's been 7 episodes since she was shot and all we know is that Krystal saw someone pick her up and she was still alive at that time. If she is alive, I bet she shows up in the last seconds of the season finale or Cosima gets some phone call from her at the end of the episode.
This season is jockeying back and forth with Season 1 in the favorite season department. Actually, I think when the season is over, I'm going to watch Season 1 and Season 4 back to back.
throws an Emmy at Chyler Leigh's head because somehow she manages to outdo herself every week and it's ridiculous
I didn't expect Supergirl to do a horror episode, but they actually kinda pulled it off. The scenes at the research station were sufficiently creepy. And the parasite looked really good.
Drunk Kara was absolutely adorable and hilarious.
The Guardian is fine. I liked James and Winn's interactions in this episode. Kudos to Jeremy Jordan for his angry speech at the DEO. It was amazing. And the idea to lace the suit with lead so Kara can't see inside it was pretty brilliant.
Is something going to happen to J'onn because of White Martian blood?
Well, Mon-El is dead. I mean, not really, but I can't say I'd miss his pasty annoying ass.
Now, let's get to the more emotional and less comprehensible part of this review:
Alex came out to Kara, and of course there had to be a misunderstanding, but that scene at Kara's apartment was beautiful. Everything about it was perfect, from the soft music and the warm lighting to all the acting choices. Alex talking about Maggie and calling her beautiful was just so pure and cute and it made me want to bite my hand off. You know the feeling. Don't lie to me.
AND THEN ALEX KISSED MAGGIE! I had to pause the episode and calm my racing heart. I was so excited and happy that I felt like I was about to explode. But underneath all that there was a nasty little gremlin sitting in my stomach, whispering "Maggie's gonna reject her", so I hesitated for a good minute before hitting play.
And guess what?
The gremlin was fucking right and I hate life.
Don't get me wrong. I want Alex and Maggie's relationship to develop slowly. And Maggie had a good reason for not wanting to get involved with a baby gay who's just starting to figure herself out. The calm, reasonable part of me knows that. But the far more vocal, far less logical part wants them to get together immediately.
Alex's heartbreak destroyed me. Holy shit. My poor baby. I'm sobbing because of her. The way she choked and stuttered and could barely talk... so real and completely devastating.
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.
I'm surprised this show returned so quickly after the holidays. In seasons 2 and 3 we had to wait until March.
The new logo is fucking sick. Easily the best one they've ever done.
I'm so mad about May. It's driving me insane that they're obviously going to make something happen between Coulson and the decoy. He'll be devastated when he finds out the truth. I can smell the angst from here.
If there was one thing I never expected to see on this show, it was Jemma Simmons doing a Southern accent. And totally kicking a guy's ass. What happened to that adorable and awkward scientist in an ugly sweater who couldn't lie her way out of a paper bag? Oh, right. As Daisy pointed out in this episode, she's been kidnapped like three times. And only twice on this planet. Jeffrey's "holy shit" face pretty much summed up all my thoughts on the subject.
I'm being nitpicky here, but why would you give your son a traditional Indian name like Vijay and then call your daughter something as quintessentially English as Ellen? It's like naming your kids John and Persephone or Mary and Rocket. Come on. Was it too hard for the writers to come up with an Indian name for the Senator?
The MVP award in this episode goes to Mack, who made me laugh repeatedly with his robot movie references. And that fist bump with YoYo after he cut Aida's head off? That is Marvel Cinematic Universe at its finest, guys.
Radcliffe is evil. I admit, I did not see that one coming.
Supergirl is finally back, which means that I'm back to getting up at 4:30 AM just to bring you these dank-ass reviews that you guys love so much (sarcasm alert) before I have to go to school.
I think the writers finally remembered that Kara is the title character. This episode focused more on her and put her at the center of the story instead of sidelining her like the last few episodes did.
I just have to say, Roulette certainly knows how to make an entrance. And going from running an underground fight club in National City to running intergalactic slave trade on another planet? That is impressive. I mean, I don't condone her actions, but you gotta admire her talent for business.
I hope that we'll get to see more of Kara the Reporter. Working at CatCo used to be such a big part of her storyline, integral to her growth as Supergirl, and now she's barely ever there. If Cat Grant were here, she wouldn't stand for this.
And she most definitely wouldn't stand for the whole Man-Hell mess. They're trying to make him a more likeable character because they want the audience to jump aboard the Karamel ship. Well, how do I put this politely? You've got to be fucking kidding me. This guy was a selfish, immature jackass right from the get-go, he was just plain rude to Kara on multiple occassions, he didn't want to have anything to do with the superhero business until the plot needed him to. Honestly, it would've been so much better if he had stayed Kara's clueless little brother. She even compared him to her cousin at one point, so how can you not get creepy incest vibes from this relationship? I know I do.
(Sidenote: I feel like the writers saw Katie McGrath and her magical inability to play a straight character, realized that a lot of people shipped Kara and Lena, and scrambled in panic towards the writers' room to get Kara together with the first male character they could think of because we already have one (1) LGBT character on this show and now Kara has to be an Outstanding Heterosexual or the homophobes would lose their minds.
Sidenote #2: I didn't really ship Karolsen in season 1, but goddamn it, I'll take it over Karamel any day.)
I liked Winn's storyline. Jeremy Jordan nailed all the emotions that our beloved computer geek had to deal with after his brush with death. And his excitement when he managed to overcome his fear and defend himself was adorable.
Alex and Maggie were happy and domestic, Maggie was wearing Alex's shirt, Alex's heart eyes were out of control and I fucking died. Then the angst came, but fortunately, it was resolved pretty quickly. And damn, Maggie was sporting such a gay look in that last scene. Amazing.
"- Plus, the glasses don't help.
- I always said that too. It's kind of ridiculous."
Oh, thank God. At least one person's noticed how lame Kara's disguise is. I knew that Maggie "I'm a Detective, Agent Danvers, I detect" Sawyer wouldn't let me down.
Agents Sam and Billy Koenig! We haven't seen them in forever! And a bunch of Star Wars references right at the beginning. They always make my nerdy heart so happy.
I'm dying at Sam's comment about people writing Quake fanfiction. It's so funny when they break the fourth wall. And shipping Daisy with Black Widow? I honestly can't tell you what I'm thinking right now. But boy, if I wasn't gay before...
Fitz's father has been a pretty big mystery since the beginning of the show. The only thing we really knew about him was that he left when Fitz was a kid. I've always had a weird feeling that someday he would turn out to be important to the plot. And look at that, I was right.
I love that no one knows exactly how many Koenings are at SHIELD. It's a hilarious running gag.
I fully support Jemma and Mack being the Co-Captains of the Leopold Fitz Defense Squad.
I've never been so relieved about two characters getting cockblocked before they could kiss. Honestly, this whole storyline with LMD May can choke.
L.T. Koenig is a woman! What a delightful surprise!
I don't know much about espionage, but playing a game of Hot Potato with one of the most powerful objects in the world? That doesn't seem very safe, does it? Do those Agents even know how to agent?
I'll never be over the way Fitz says "Jemma". It's like music to my ears.
Jemma finally figured out what's going on with May! Where's my champagne?
Oh, so they want to kill Coulson. Well, I'm pretty sure that if Loki couldn't kill him - at least not enough for him to stay dead - then a bunch of guys in a submarine won't succeed either.
Well, it's official. I ship a human with an AI. I can't help myself. Rip and Gideon's relationship is absolutely delightful.
Wow, Gideon is really attractive. It was nice to finally have a face to go along with the voice.
That scene between Amaya and Gertrude was amazing. I loved it. I kind of wanted the team to keep Gertie as a pet. Can you imagine? Any crisis from now on, any bad guy, any apocalypse... All they'd have to do would be to unleash the T-Rex and watch her wreck everything in her path. I'm also still giggling a little bit because of how absurdly tiny the T-Rex's arms were. Look at this apex predator, scary and ferocious, flapping its little hands around. It's kind of adorable.
What if Nate is Amaya's daughter's father? What if he decides to stay with her in 1942? I can't even begin to comprehend how much it would mess up the timeline, he and his grandfather existing together at the same moment in time and being roughly the same age.
To be honest, Rip was a lot more interesting when he was evil, but I guess they had to bring him back at some point. I just hope that Sara remains Captain at least for a little while. She's a much better and more competent leader than Rip ever was.
Yeah, baby! I'm all about crossovers. And a vintage musical crossover? Sign me the fuck up!
I love the fact that Melissa Benoist, Grant Gustin and Darren Criss all used to be on Glee. It must've been a fun little reunion for them to shoot this thing.
Well, would you look at that. Fuckboy isn't just a former slave owner, he's a former prince of slave owners. What a catch, am I right?
(Can he please just die already?)
At least Kara dumped his ass for now, but let's be real, this is the CW. She'll take him back despite the fact that he's a toxic piece of shit. Just free her from this awful relationship. What do I have to do? Cause I'd sell one of my kidneys to make that happen.
Cop Maggie! Cop Maggie! Cop Maggie! Give me more of that, please! Give me 42 minutes of that, I don't give a damn. I love her so much.
Winn is really unlucky when it comes to the ladies. But seriously, this one was his fault. Having sex in a museum? Don't you have a bed for that? Or, I don't know, a kitchen counter? Or any other flat surface in your apartment? If you want an adventure, go skydiving, not commit felonies. And fine, I understand why Lyra did what she did, but why did she even need Winn for that in the first place? She's invisible, for crying out loud. She didn't need a patsy to take the fall. The police would have never been able to prove it was her, anyway.
Oh my God. Best fucking episode of season 3. Fight me on this, I don't care. A vintage musical inside a gangster film inside an episode of a superhero show? This was better than I could've imagined. The music and the scenery were wonderful, the atmosphere was perfect, and I'm amazed by how many musically talented actors there are on the CW/DC shows.
There were so many things I loved about this that I could write an essay about them, but I'm just going to list my top 5:
Melissa Benoist in that dress and with that hair. 11/10. She looked absolutely stunning.
"My sister says I put Kara in karaoke." What the shit? That's the best pun ever!
Stein and Joe as a couple of gay gangster dads. It doesn't get better than this.
"I'm your super friend" is my new favorite song. It was so cute and funny, and it just melted my heart. I love Barry and Kara's relationship so much, I still firmly believe that it's the best thing to have come out of the Arrowverse.
Barry proposed to Iris (again) and somehow it was even more touching than the first time. Such a beautiful scene.
And now, my top 5 least favorite things:
Mon-El talking
Mon-El breathing
Mon-El being there
Alex Danvers NOT being there (seriously, she would never agree to stay behind while Trashcan and J'onn took Kara to a parallel Earth. She just wouldn't let her sister out of her sight and it's bullshit that she didn't appear in this episode.)
Kara taking Mon-El back literally less than 24 hours after breaking up with him. Just. Let. Her. Live. I fucking hate this relationship so much. It makes me uncomfortable and sick to my stomach.
But yeah, still an awesome episode. I couldn't stop grinning like an idiot the whole time.
Ophelia: stands on the beach, water rushing over her feet, sunlight on her face, feeling joy and wonder for the first time, generally having a deep and aesthetically pleasing moment
Fitz: "I feel like I'm gonna throw up."
Honestly? Same.
I'll admit, for about 2 seconds I did feel bad for Ophelia. Mallory Jansen did such a great job of portraying someone who is experiencing real human emotions for the first time. But I still got creeped out during her scenes with Fitz and I'm upset that they made his relationships with Jemma and Ophelia seem like two equally valid options. They're not. Aida inserted herself into Fitz's life and manipulated him into doing what she wanted him to do. Fortunately, she went batshit crazy when he rejected her and used her weird grab bag of powers to fuck shit up. Good. All my empathy for her is officially gone. I hope they lock her up so deep underground no one will ever see or hear her again.
Jemma and Fitz's reunion was so beautiful. They didn't even need any words. Just two people, holding each other after a traumatic experience, letting their tears flow. Such a perfect little moment.
Coulson awkwardly tip-toeing around what happened with LMD May was hilarious. And May on adrenaline was awesome and terrifying. I just love these two so much.
"- I drank the bottle of Haig.
- WHAT? You piece of..."
Best. Moment. Ever.
Yo-Yo has no idea what she's getting into. She needs to find Mack and convince him to go with her. I wanted the team to use Aida's machine to bring Hope to the real world (how cute would that be?), but I guess it blew up, so Mack will have to say goodbye to his daughter and we'll all get our hearts broken. I can already feel the pain.
Ghost Rider is back! Maybe he'll drag Aida to hell. That would be so satisfying. And I really want him to absolve Fitz and tell him that he's not a bad person. Chances are, if a dude with a flaming skull for a head tells him that, he'll believe it. Oh, and Robbie's return also means that Daisy can finally get some. I wasn't the only one who noticed some weird sexual tension between them in the first part of the season, right?
Now, where is my season 5? Come on, ABC!
Legends: break the first rule of time travel, meet their past selves, fuck up all of time to the point where there are fucking dinosaurs running around present-day LA
Barry, watching from the sidelines: throws his hands up in disbelief, shakes his head, walks away muttering curse words under his breath
Yup, the level of hypocrisy is staggering. On the other hand, if I had to choose between living in Doomworld and risking the possibility of ending up with a T-rex in my backyard, I wouldn't even hesitate.
Eobard got fucked! Yes! That was so satisfying.
Is Rip gone for good? My guess is that he'll pop up every now and then in season 3. I'm glad he won't be around all the time, though. He said it himself: "This team has functioned far better in my absence than it ever did under my leadership". Preach. Sara makes a really great captain. And the team we've got now is so well-balanced. Everyone contributes something and has their own stories, struggles and character development. That's one of the things that made season 2 so much better than season 1 and honestly, Rip's absence helped with that.
The scene between Sara and Laurel was so emotional and tear-jerking. I'm so proud of Sara for being able to overcome her personal desires and do the right thing.
I can't believe how fun this season was. I had a blast watching each new episode. I'm very excited for season 3. I guess we have 6 months of waiting ahead of us now, huh?
Another great episode. Probably one of my favourites of the entire show, to be honest.
I couldn't stop cracking up for the first 5 minutes. The scene with The Machine experiencing a facial recognition error was shown at New York Comic Con last October. I watched it on YouTube months ago, and I thought it was pure gold, but I was sure it was just a fun, little bonus. I never expected it to be an actual scene from an actual episode, but I'm so glad it is. The cast's impressions of each other were hilarious. Amy Acker's Reese and Finch were particularly on point. We also got Root in bunny slippers and her and Finch redecorating the subway. It was nice to have some happy stuff before things got serious again.
The Machine going crazy was really sad for me, especially when Harold realised that she was suffering, reliving her deaths over and over. His speech about things not being black and white and about people doing their best really touched me. Harold was a different man when he created The Machine, and since then he's had to learn that good and bad aren't always mutually exclusive, which is exactly what The Machine needed to understand in this episode. I love how they draw parallels between The Machine and her human agents.
How great is the relationship between Root and Harold? They've come so far. She kidnapped him when they first met, and now they're working together, fighting against Samaritan together, living together, and he's willing to sacrifice The Machine if he has to choose between her and Root? I'm in tears. And Bear likes Root too!
Of course that random guy we saw in the middle of the episode wasn't random. I really should've seen it coming.
The ending was amazing as well. Team Machine on a picnic? That's some fanfiction shit right there, and I love it. I know it won't last, but they deserve some peace and quiet every once in a while.
Okay, so apparently this episode aired a day early in Canada? Thank you, Canada. You rock.
That being said, my mind is filled with incomprehensible yelling, and my hands are shaking, so I'll keep this one brief.
Have we just watched Shaw's Winter Soldier origin story?
Sarah Shahi was on fire, hot damn. What an amazing performance.
I was sure that Shaw's escape wasn't real the moment I saw that random-ass boat. Way too convenient. Then the episode made me doubt a few times whether it was a simulation or reality, but in the end it turned out to be exactly what I'd suspected from the beginning.
I'd been waiting to see my baby Shaw again for so long, but I wasn't prepared for that. God, I can't deal with my emotions. It's too much.
I just really want them to kill Greer, all right? Slowly and painfully. Hell, I'd kill that asshole myself if I could.
If the simulation was in Shaw's head, why wasn't it from her point of view? And have those creeps watched Shoot bang every time they've run it?
This episode was unbelievably sad, and I'll probably still be crying about it next week, but Sarah Shahi tearing apart Amy Acker's shirt might just be the greatest thing I've ever witnessed with my own two eyes. Is there any chance we'll get some more of that when Root and Shaw are finally reunited in the real world?
Shaw has chosen to put a bullet in her head 6,741 times instead of killing Root. I'm bawling. Ultimate OTP goals right there.
What an exquisite episode. It struck the perfect balance between heartbreaking and awesome. Easily one of the best they've ever done and definitely in my top 3.
I'll be on the floor sobbing uncontrollably if anyone would like to join me.
