It's so good to have the Legends back! It's also great to see that they haven't changed in the slightest. It's go good to see that the writers are still smoking the same weed they used to to give us compelling, action-packed, and emotive episodes like this one.
Never change, you beautiful morons! Never change!
So, this episode delivered a murderous unicorn in Woodstock, Nate and Mick's own buddy comedy, Nate's mum's famous sandwiches, Ray making out with a tree, Constantine being the absolute badass, Ava and Sara being extra adorable and in a healthy relationship, Gary's nipple and an unknown demon coming for Constantine. And also, Nate's dad is Biff! Good lord, I've missed this show so damn much.
I love Ray. He's all heart and hasn't got a bad bone in his body. I loved his scene with Zari at the end. So full of heart and heartbreaking. Zari is slowly becoming one of my favourite characters ever. She's all kindness and doesn't give a fuck about anything.
Ray is completely breaking the fourth wall. "It will be good for our ratings" and "we have some dedicated fans" made me laugh out loud. All these me me remember my all time favourite "this is the second worst attack of the clones I've ever seen".
When he said "everyone loves the Supernatural" I couldn't keep myself from bursting out laughing. Petition to have these guys saying they are going out to hunt the supernatural and deciding to wear layers and layers of flannel only. I need a Legends-Supernatural crossover asap.
Gary as an intern Legends is what I wanted. Give us more Gary. He's the absolute best. I'm so protective of him. I get the feeling that I would be him if I were on the show. I'm dying for his evil nipple to come back from hell and to attack the Legends. Thus, we'd go from a fluffy toy (all praise Bebbo) to a possessed nipple. I think it's all in their wheelhouse, though.
I need more Constantine in my life. Matt Ryan is simply perfect, although I don't get the whole I can't join the Legends because everything I touch dies, or worse. THey guy's all alone and is bound to join the Legends, just do it now and stop playing hard to get. Gosh, every time I see Constantine I get angry that they cancelled the show. However, it'd be awesome if they get Chaz and Zed to show up. Since this season is more focused on the Supernatural, they could add Many to the mix as well. But what can I say, a girl can only dream.
The whole unicorn scene was great. And Zari covered in unicorn...vomit? was super adorable. I mean, Ray-Ray? And Nate and Rory....and Axel! Damn, the feels. I loved their "I thought you were dead?" and "I thought you were dead...on the inside!"
Speaking of my new favourite crime buddies. I loved the chemistry between them and Nate being Rory's jimminy cricket telling him to protect the timeline to save Black Sabbath was great.
Nate's dad being Biff from BTTF was amazing. I guess that's why he was wearing Biff's clothes in last season's "Phone Home". Given the meta level of this show, I was expecting Biff to call Nate butthead.
The hippy thingy got me laughing more than I care to admit but that guy carrying that "Speed: $1,00" sign almost made me die of laughter.
That split screen scene was outstanding. I loved how all of them got reunited at the end. Please, keep these coming!
Now, all praise the writers of this show for giving us a healthy relationship. Thank God they escaped that forced CW relationship drama. However, I always expect it to hit when I least expect it.
I love hos Legends is supposed to be a fun show which brings laughter in my life, but that can make me cry the next minute. That scene with Zari and Ray was heartbreaking. You could see the pain in Zari's eyes. It must take great courage and strong will to have the power to change it all and be finally happy but deciding not to do it to save the timeline.
Well, I didn't plan on sleeping tonight anyway.
I do have to say though, aside from the bathtub-smashing spider traumatizing me for life, I enjoyed this episode very much. I've been reserving my judgement of this season, but after 4 really good - in my opinion, at least - episodes, I can officially say that I already like it more than most of Peter Capaldi's run. I mean, I adored Peter himself, but the writing didn't do him justice most of the time.
I fall more and more in love with Jodie every week. Everything she does is so perfect, from her excited "Tea at Yaz's!", rambling about getting a flat and buying a couch, the whole Ed Sheeran thing, her confused "I don't think so. Are we?" (by the way, I am fully on board the Yaz/Thirteen ship, fight me) to her mourning the dead spider mother (despite my raging arachnophobia, I did tear up during that scene because growing to the point where you can no longer breathe is a horrible fate that no creature deserves). Mandip Gill is definitely a standout among the companions. I really like that Yaz follows the Doctor into danger so unflinchingly, I just hope it doesn't get her killed. And so many people seem to think that Bradley Walsh is a bad actor for some reason, but to me, he nailed the emotional moments in this episode. The fact that he keeps seeing Grace everywhere in their house is such a realistic portrayal of grief and it was done in a lovely way. Tosin Cole is the hyperactive 8-year-old of the group, which I don't really mind. Ryan blasting music through the speakers to get the spiders to the panic room did make me laugh. That's just peak Doctor Who.
I also love that the spiders weren't the villains of the story at all. No, the true enemy was a selfish man and corporate greed, which is so true for so many things in real life that it actually hurts. Keep spilling that tea, Doctor Who.
Team Tardis is officially a thing! The Doctor was so happy, bless her hearts. I can't wait to see what shenanigans these losers get into next.
Overall, this episode maybe wasn't flawless, but that's not really what I expect anyway. If something keeps me entertained, leaves me wanting more and actually gets the intended emotional response from me, I consider it good. During this episode I laughed more than once, I felt excited, I felt sad, I felt angry (seriously, fuck that guy) and I'm already pumped for next week. So as far as I'm concerned, mission accomplished. Now, if all of y'all who are getting this episode below 70% could perhaps stop, that'd be great. This was worlds better than fucking Love and Monsters and you know it.
Nice try show! But I'm not buying what you're selling. Murphy's come such a long way. He's moved way past being a selfish, self serving asshole. He cares too much about his friends to betray them like that. Plus, the writers of this show are too good to give him such a lazy regression. Murphy is too smart for you Josephine! He's just buying time.
Every second of this episode was magnificent. I was worried they were gonna drag out the whole not Clarke thing. But I should've known better. This show doesn't let you catch your breath before throwing you into the next thing. And I loved it so much that it was Bellamy who figured it out. They're each other's person, how could he not? #bellarkeforever
Also Jordan being the most sensible made my heart happy. He's the new moral compass. He definitely takes after his dad! It's not okay that the primes are brainwashing people into thinking it's cool to kill someone to hijack their body. Besides, this boy, who grew up really isolated, was the first one to realize something smelled fishy. And everyone else, who should know better than to take things at face value, were super dismissive about his concerns. I love Jordan.
And how amazing was that Octavia/Diyoza heart to heart? Diyoza certainly knows a thing or two about being a violently ruthless leader. And it seems she has struggled with the guilt and consequences of her actions (much as Octavia is doing right now) and come out the other side. It's also pretty clear she sees herslef in Octavia. Maybe she'll turn into a mentor of sorts (kinda like Indra was in previous seasons), and teach her how to accept and move on, so Octavia doesn't self-destruct and can learn to live with herself and the terrible things she's done, just like all the other characters of the show. Plus there was that weird event with the green light and now her hand is all messed up!
I can't wait for next week!
[8.5/10] One of my complaints about early episodes of The Good Place was that the psychology could be too simple. We’d see the humans face some challenge in the afterlife, flashback to an illuminating vignette in the past that informed their choices and character, and then see them have a breakthrough in the present.
“The Answer” is that idea on speed. We don’t just get a solid Chidi flashback; we get flashbacks to his whole life, to hidden moments over the course of the show we haven’t gotten to see before, to intimate conversations that gave him guidance and solace. And we don’t just get to see him have a breakthrough; we get to see him have the breakthrough, a resolution of his constant need to decide and find the solution to the problem.
The psychology gets sufficiently complex to match. It’s still comprehensible for a network T.V. show presentation, but the story of why Chidi is the way he is has more bumps and bruises along the way than the type of backstory we saw in the first season.
It’s a story about fearing his parents were on their way to divorce and Chidi seemingly arguing them out of it. The idea that, like all kids, he was dismayed by his parents fighting, and unlike most kids, thought that logic and study were the key to preventing it. When that plan seemed to work, it set him down the path to thinking that all problems had solutions, and that any solution could be found with enough diligence and perseverance.
It led Chidi to a life of constantly trying to find the answer, of treating all questions as directed toward one possible resolution that must be excavated through rigorous logic and constant examination of the texts. The show underscores this a little too heavily in Chidi’s scene with his schoolyard chum, but it does well to frame Chidi as having solved his first big problem this way and it having set him on the path that would carry him through the rest of his life...and afterlife.
Granted, no philosophy advisor in the world would tell their grad student that their thesis needs more heart, and Chidi’s girlfriend breaking up with him the same week feels convenient. (Though hey, I’ll never turn down a shout out to David Hume in the process.) But it sets up the twin concerns of the episode: that Chidi treats all questions as both answerable and equally important, and that he thinks love and romantic fulfillment are a problem that can be solved in the same way that a philosophical problem could.
What’s great about “The Answer” is that it not only sets up Chidi being able to get past both of those issues, but it does so through intimate, heart-to-hearts with all his fellow survivors. He gets a lesson in decisiveness and being in the moment from Jason, something the Jacksonville native is an expert in. He gets a lesson on confidence from Tahani, who talks about achieving it through failure, through getting knocked down and getting back up again until the prospect of getting knocked down is no big deal.
He gets an unexpected kiss from Eleanor, and with it, a lesson on the universe-approved love of your life perhaps not being the actual love of your life, but it being something that you have to figure out for yourself. And he gets a final, and most outstanding lesson from Michael, who tells him that soulmates happen through work, not through fiat, and that there’s more to Chidi’s parents story than he ever knew.
Chidi’s parents didn’t reconcile because he argued them into it. They went to counseling; they saw the best of each other in their son; they were reminded of what was already there. Michael drives this home, with his little bits of afterlife-worn wisdom. Just as he’s about to have his memory wiped, Chidi discovers that the ideas he’s founded his life on -- that any problem, including love, can be solved -- are wrong.
That should be devastating, and yet instead it’s freeing. The man plagued by indecision because he’s not sure what path will take him closer to the mythical, platonic (or, more accurately, Kantian) ideal answer, is suddenly allowed to pursue his passions, to follow what moves him, without needing to have it approved and understood from each philosophical underpinning before going after it.
That’s especially true for his affections for Eleanor. I’ll admit, I’m still not fully sold on the Eleanor/Chidi pairing, and I have major qualms about the “finding The One will heal everything that ails you” message that more than a few other T.V. shows and movies subscribe to. And yet, there’s something incredibly stirring about Chidi’s note to himself. He has spent so long in search of the answer that it’s been paralyzing, preventing him from living his best life and being truly happy. Now, he’s found someone who conjures that happiness within him, and he realizes it’s more important than any grand, abstract problem he might otherwise set his mind on. There’s something truly beautiful about that thought.
There’s also something brilliantly ironic about the fact that Chidi has his breakthrough on not needing to find the answer and self-actualizes in a way that frees him from that burden, right when the group needs him to “Go all Chidi” and decide what new principles the afterlife should be founded upon.
But maybe, just as ironically, he’s already found them. Chidi and Michael reach the conclusion that life is not a puzzle that can be solved once and then set aside. Instead, you have to solve anew each day, again and again. Maybe the answer Chidi’s looking for isn’t a new way to formulate points or tally good deeds and bad. Maybe it’s that points, that reductions of the infinite complexities of our existence to dots and dashes and other efforts to chalk up the best and worst of us, inevitably fail to account for who and what we are from day to day. It represents a similar evolution in The Good Place itself -- recognizing that what makes a person who they are takes more than an A-to-B flashback, but a rush of key moments and realizations that build to a greater whole.
Either way, humanity, existence, and more may rest on Chidi’s shoulders, but he’s no longer burdened by the need to solve for x, and content to look into the eyes of the woman he loves with joy and hope. For now, at least, that’s enough.
Happy New Year, everyone!
I know that I'm in the minority when I say that I genuinely liked series 11. For starters, I found the overarching storyline a lot more coherent than a large chunk of Moffat's era. And I thoroughly enjoy Jodie's Doctor. She's bright and quirky and fun and she's got that oh-so-Doctory, slightly unhinged glint in her eye. I absolutely can't wait for her to finally snap Time Lord Victorious-style because I have no doubt that she's gonna do it brilliantly. The companions have grown on me too, as all of their predecessors did. Was last season perfect? No, it wasn't. But did I vibe with it? Yes, I did. I know there are a lot of edgy fanboys out there who'd love to explain to me that it was in fact garbage and the worst thing in the history of everything, but you can pry my enjoyment from my cold, dead hands. It's a lot more fun to like things, even if I see their flaws.
Anyway, I really liked this episode! I felt the mystery was quite compelling, there was a good mix of action, suspense, comedy and drama, and the score was REALLY good. The companions are coming into their own more and more - I particularly enjoyed Yaz and Ryan's scenes together. Jodie is exactly as chaotic and living her best life as I expected her to be, and I would absolutely die for her. And that reveal at the end? Just (chef's kiss) delicious. Can't wait for more!
The list of requirements for actors auditioning for The Master:
* must have sufficient chaotic energy
* must have aggressively sexual chemistry with whoever is playing The Doctor
I'm happy to say that they've chosen the perfect person again.
Jodie has such expressive eyes. She gets so much incredible acting done just through looks, communicating so much without saying a single word. The little details in her performance? The nuance? I don't wanna sound like a cheesy old white lady but that shit is breathtaking, bro. I love, love, love her as The Doctor. I truly hope she sticks around for a couple more seasons because I can't imagine having to say goodbye to her.
I found the laser shoes to be SO over-the-top ridiculous (actually same goes for Ryan piloting a whole ass plane via an app), but then I remembered that this is Doctor Who and that stuff kinda comes with the name, so I guess I'm giving it a pass.
I like the fact that the companions finally called out The Doctor for being so cryptic. Thirteen in her own way seems to be running from her past even harder than the previous incarnations, thinking that if she just ignores it, it'll all be fine. Well, the past came to bite her in the ass big time in the last 2 episodes. She can't outrun the darkness forever. Eventually, it'll all catch up to her and when that happens, the companions got a big storm coming.
Also, the Timeless Child is something I've completely forgotten about and honestly I kinda thought the writers have too but now Chibnall is referencing it again? I see you with your continuity, Chris. I see you. Nicely done.
The flow of this episode detracted from its dramatic effect. There were many good pieces in this episode, but their order and the editing of them reduced their impact. Naomi's rescue, the battle with the Rocinante, the battle at the gate, and the reunion with Avasarala, none of these hit with me the way they could've.
Firstly, the nice speech Avasarala gives during the reception would have been much better as the last scene of the episode. After the belters and Martians have taken over the ring, we would be concerned about the future, then Avasarala gives us hope.
The other development that didn't resonate with me was the dissolution of Drummer's team. I understand that they were torn between supporting Marcos and not, but that turmoil was caused by a threat of destruction, not a desire to work with Inaros. The ties between the crew were shown to be extremely strong, emotionally and otherwise. It should take an enormous conflict to break them. The crew knew that the agreement with Inaros was made under duress and so should have understood how fragile it was. The crew faced two options: cooperate with Inaros and do things they did not want to, or risk their lives and their family's lives by defying him. Both options would be reasonable and acceptable to the crew, and it doesn't resonate with me that the crew would be that upset by Drummer making the decision everyone thought she'd make in the first place. I could accept a decision by some of the crew to leave temporarily because their brother was killed, but to blame Drummer for this (and not Inaros) and completely break their bonds is a stretch given their relationship.
[9.0/10 on a post-classic Simpsons scale] I was worried about this one. The Simpsons taking on pot in 2020 feels like the potential for some real “Old Man Yells at Cloud” levels of out of touch. But this was really good! It was funny! It told a good story! And while the third act goes off the rails a little bit, it resolves everything on a sweet note. Post-classic Simpsons, I didn’t know you had it in you! Kudos to writer Carolyn Ormine and substitute showrunner Matt Selman.
I like the emotional conflict and the story here. Marge doesn't know what to do with herself while Maggie’s at daycare, and stumbles into a job at a slick, modern CBD shop backed by Drederick Tatum. Meanwhile Homer ends up starting a business with Moe to offer old devotees the weed-buying experience of their youth. The conflict between the new look of buying marajuana and the old look is both a good source of comedy and a good source of drama between the couple.
I like Marge having qualms about participating in pot sales, only to be convinced by Tatum that she’s actually participating in wellness. There’s commentary and even some cynicism in the idea that a button down woman like Marge selling them pot puts squeamish folks at ease about engaging in something that is legal but still a touch taboo in certain corners. It makes sense that Tatum and company, who are wanting to put a new, more sophisticated and respectable face on pot, would want to use Marge’s to do it.
Along the way there’s tons of great gags. The episode is rife with great THC-based wordplay. (It’s not the most clever, but I think my favorite is “chicken pot pot pie”, though Marge’s “I’m a healer and you’re a dealer” is a good one too). Billy Porter and Chelsea Peretti are quite funny as Marge’s suave counter-culture coworkers. The running bits about Homer replicating the old pot-buying experience are amusing, as is the fact that the cops run a sting not based on him selling drugs, but on him selling food without a license.
Marge betraying Homer like that is a solid character beat, and I like the resolution that he tries to expose Marge as a fraud to her clientele as a teetotaler for retribution, only to help comfort her through her disorienting high. It’s a bit of a quick fix, but it’s sweet, and the show gets a lot of humorous mileage out of Marge the square being under the influence. Homer accidentally burning down Tatum’s center seems unnecessary, but I guess the show needed to do something to restore the status quo.
Overall, this was a surprisingly timely and funny take on modern pot sales, and a really good Homer and Marge story to boot. It’s in competition with “Thanksgiving of Horror” for best of the season in my book!
[7.0/10] You need episodes like “Lamentis” in a television show. Establishing Sylvie’s dynamic with our Loki is important, especially if she’s to be a major character going forward. She has a plan to overthrow the Timekeepers. The work that’s frustrated the TVA has apparently been years in the making. And her background is different enough that she resents even being called “Loki.” Taking time to set up who she is, what she wants, and how she related to the Loki we know and love is a deft choice on the part of the show.
But at the same time, though, I don’t really like their dynamic. Or rather, it’s fine, but not necessarily enough to fill an entire episode of television. You can sense Loki going for a sort of screwball banter between Loki and Sylvie, and normally I appreciate that. (Hello Gilmore Girls fans!) But it only clicks intermittently here. The sense of two gods of mischief each trying to betray one another, find various sneaky ways to get what they want, and debate what should be shared with one another should be compelling. Sometimes it is! Much of the time, though, their back-and-forth is cliché and trite.
Don’t get me started on the debates about what “love is.” “Lamentis” winks at the audience with the pair of Lokis trading poetry until Sylvie calls our Loki out for the banality of his metaphor. Still, the dialogue doesn’t sing like it needs to in order to support an episode that’s founded on almost nothing but.
The other element undergirding “Lamentis” is action, and there, I’m of two minds. On the one hand, I’m always impressed with a solid oner. The choreography of Loki and Sylvie racing through an alien enclave to try to get to an ark ship is cool. While the episode doesn’t quite reach Children of Men-like proportions (which seems to be a reference point, and while there’s a few hidden cuts, I admire the chutzpah of showing the impending destruction of the titular planet in one long take, helping to convey the urgency and chaos of the whole thing.
There’s two problems with it though. 1. Loki and Sylvie don’t really do anything. Sure, things happen around them, and they throw a few punches here and there. But the uncut sequence mainly centers on the duo rushing around. While the camera moves are still tricky to pull off regardless, the two of them doing little beyond running around the set diminishes the impact of making their attempt one big sequence.
That said, you can see the potential for Sylvie and Loki as a pairing. Who would interest Loki more than a version of him/herself. Their conversions carry an almost flirty vibe, and the mutual propensity for betrayal creates a series of double-bluff situations where they’re impressed and envious of one another, while knowing that each would stab the other in the bank if the moment called for it.
Still, our Loki shows a little empathy, choosing to sneak aboard the train rather than follow Sylvie’s plan and risk getting anyone killed. The episode hints at backstory in dialogue that may have differentiated Sylvie and Loki beyond their separate magical capabilities. I’m still not hugely into their dynamic, which comes off less endearing and vital than it needs to. But you can still see the potential there, even if the moment-to-moment writing isn’t exactly fantastic.
We also get a few key tidbits. We learn that Sylvie’s mind-control powers have their limits, especially when dealing with “strong minds”. We learn that they don’t work on Loki himself, because his mind in particular seems too strong for her self-taught magic. ANd most of all, we learn that the employees of the TVA (an organization that Stlvie refers to as fascist) were not created by the Timekeepers, but rather are variants like them who have somehow been enlisted by the agency, and might not even know it. (This lends credence to the fan theory that Peggy Carter is a TVA agent.)
On the whole, it’s just not that fun of a ride, though. I’m actually a sucker for dialogue-heavy, sparkling conversation-based episodes. Throw in two characters who have much inc common but also reason not to trust one another and consider themselves different? So much the better. But the plotting in “Lamentis” is perfunctory and, more to the point, the conversations between our two protagonists here can’t quite carry the hour with wit and engrossing banter. I appreciate the swing, but this is more of a double than a home run.
Wow, it just keeps getting better. Trek has done its fair share of horror stories, some poor and some good, but this is probably most effective scare episode the franchise has done. I loved the way it riffed off moments from the core Alien trilogy and managed to do some properly unsettling things in the process. Besides from having a fantastic design, the moment the blue alien dude started having trouble breathing was a wonderfully staged sequence full of dread.
The Gorn looked great and felt vicious even as infants. I love how this series is setting them up. I also appreciate how we've come to understand La'an's character up to now and her own reactions to this situation.
The most interesting part here may have been Spock. While I'm not sure the actual execution of his emotional barriers dropping was, the effect of it on the character is certainly fascinating. Ethan Peck has been KILLING IT so far and is handling this stuff so well. It's an angle that works. I quite like that the franchise is acknowledging the more emotional Spock we saw in 'The Cage' and working to bridge things to the more stoic version we are familiar with.
And damn, the episode blindsided me with the death of Hemmer. I clocked those two new away team characters as dead from the moment we were introduced to them, but Hemmer was a real shock. Especially given that he seems to have become a fan favourite. What a way to go out too - compare it to the lacklustre death of Airiam over on Discovery, which had zero impact despite the character having been there since the start. This one hit hard, with the reactions of the rest of the crew really doing it justice too.
