{ if it wasn't me, it was you. }

[delga]

Oh boy. This time last year CBS had renewed just about everything it was airing. This time around? Survivor. What? Not that the shows are really in danger of being cut but still. This is a whole new world of crazy.

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» The Black Donnellys, 1x10, Wasn’t That Enough?
» 1x11, The Black Drop.

So, randomly, this series just got to being really good again. Forget the Sean-plot because whatever. Forget Samson (although he’s pretty freaky the way he is). Forget Reilly’s memory loss. Forget Tommy and Huey’s missus. The real glue here is the increasing body count, the vicious way these boys operate, the inherent horror in dealing with people like Dokie and Nicky at the same time, and the way the Donnellys are spinning out of their comfort zones. Tommy’s doing a lot of things in his father’s name, but as that switch-cut between his kicking the crap out of that guy who was helping them track down the mortgage company and Dokie kicking the crap out of his father shows: he’s becoming all the things he didn’t want to touch. Seeing Jimmy at the end of 1x11 was devastating. I’m not a big fan of Jimmy, but that was just awful to see. When someone humiliates and hurts a part of the unit, that has tragic consequences. And now there’s got to be a showdown, obviously, between Tommy and Dokie. It’s all falling apart and the thing is, you know it has to, because Joey is telling the story retroactively. He’s in jail. It’s a real tragedy, because we already have some inkling that it’s not going to work out. You have no idea how excited that makes me, seriously.

Tommy is crossing lines; Kevin is terrifying in a pretty hilarious way. “I’ve got a spot picked out and everything!” It’s sad, and pretty funny because he’s so into it, that it’s pretty perverse. But the real tragedy there is Tommy handing the mortgage guy (Tony Lino?) over to Nicky. That’s the real crime. All Kevin was going to do was kill him and end his misery. Handing the guy over to Nicky – there’s a lot of foreboding there, much like Tommy’s interactions with Huey’s kid. There’s a very ‘all this has come before’ feel to the Donnelly’s actions, not just because Tommy is mirroring his father’s moves, but because he’s mirroring Huey’s, and because one day these men that Tommy and his brothers are killing are going to come back – they have sons, too. And there’s always that drop of black blood. The family is circled by something both fatal and fatalistic. They can’t avoid what’s happening because in this fiction, the ending has already been written (both literally and figuratively). The sheer volume of violence in this is – somewhat disgustingly – both what attracts and intrigues me. Blood on two levels: blood shared and blood shed. The stuff that the best tragedies are made from.

No, I don’t really understand the significance of Jenny’s dead husband to this story other than it proving that she and Tommy have been screwing one another over for years and yet they’re still at it. Ugh.

But seriously, you can feel the tension increasing. There’s the real estate story, Nicky moving in on Dokie, Dokie moving in on the Donnellys and all the time, the boys trying to get out of this mess. To think this started because Kevin owed 5k to an Italian. That’s just crazy.

I cannot wait for this week’s episode. The show has admittedly been slow in the middle but as we’re heating up for the finale, things are moving at a much better pace. It was a lot like this with The Lyon’s Den which ultimately had an explosive finale. I think this will be the same. Fingers crossed.

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» Bones, 2x19, Spaceman in a Crater.
2x20, The Glowing Bones in the Old Stone House.

I thought the first case was pretty boring, actually, and made relatively little sense to me. No, I mean, I understood it, but I didn’t see why I was supposed to sympathise with this husband/wife pairing. The zero-gravity thing was random but amusing. The second one – I don’t really know. It was good! I just… okay, so AJ Buckley was as adorable and as touching as ever, and the look Brennan gave Booth at the end of the sushi bar scene was priceless. But still. There were moments where my head really hurt.

Brennan and Booth. What to say? “I’d back down if I were you. He shot a clown once.” PRICELESS.

The Hodgins/Angela story swings from being cute to boring to annoying and then back again. I don’t even have the words to describe my reaction. (I don’t remember the first proposal is how little I give a damn.) And ANGELA. For crying out loud, woman. I still get fairly annoyed with her when she brings up Sully. I really wish she’d stop pressing Brennan about that. I honestly believe that a lot of the time Brennan makes decisions that she would be perfectly content to live with if it wasn’t for Angela’s constant prodding. Like, last week Brennan said, quite clearly, “I made a decision. Regrets serve no purpose.” Sure, whilst this might be emotionally damning, it’s also fairly consistent with the way in which she thinks and I’m pretty certain it could tide her over to the next guy. But Angela picks at the whole thing. It’s infuriating to me, especially because she’s right. If Angela wants to be impulsive, she should stop stringing Hodgins along. And stop prying with Brennan. I don’t care if the woman’s excuse is that she’s toying with her best friend’s notions of romance – Angela knows her own mind and she does whatever the hell she wants. In that instance she’s just using Brennan as an excuse. Gah. I’m irrationally annoyed by this.

(Yes, okay. OKAY. She apologises afterwards. But then again with the ‘my experience is greater than yours’. The music and Angela’s earnest face makes it sound sympathetic, but WHATEVER. What the fuck is so wrong with Brennan curving away from the norm? Yes, okay, she herself misses Sully. But the woman loves her job. I honestly, honestly believe that Brennan would have halve her issues if she didn’t have people trying to make her more like them. I think she could be happy making her own decisions so long as people stopped fucking prodding her! AND I’M TOTALLY BACKED BY CANON. The scene in the car with Booth? How are these people talking to her to the extent that she feels that everyone else thinks she’s heartless? Zjetz.)

(Also-also-also-also: oh, Jack.)

I love Zack, though, and that whole exchange he had with Cam over remembering that the bodies used to be people. “What does this have to do with removing the flesh from the bones?” OH, ZACK. (“Sushiguy23 was telling the truth!” Ilu.) Also, acting! “Why am I always the victim?” I love Brennan’s glee over this fact. They’re so wonderfully childlike at times.

But mostly: I think my problem is that I don’t really know what I’m expecting to get from this show. More Zack, hopefully, but other than that, what? I don’t even know. The cases can be interesting, but they can also be deathly boring. The cast can be loveable, but they can be piss annoying. The latter episode started off really awful but when the characters came together to work out the case, I was completely engrossed. So. I hope the finale is a winner.

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» Criminal Minds, 2x22, Open Season.
» 2x23, Legacy.

The first of these two episodes was about the two brothers that hunted those people and was pretty good all things considered. It reminded me a little of a NCIS episode from season 3 but was typically more serious. Also, pretty terrifying. I need to stop watching this show before I go to sleep.

That sentiment is especially true for the second of the two episodes because that one freaked me the fuck out. (This is the one where the homeless were being kidnapped and sadistically tortured.) That poor old man. I felt pretty ill watching this episode for obvious reasons. It was horrible.

Both episodes featured a strong, triumphant female victim which was pretty interesting. I’d have more to say about the characters themselves but this is one of those shows where unless there’s something exceptional, I’m more likely to remember plot than character interactions.

I’ll say this, though: PAGET BREWSTER, I COVET YOUR HAIR. VICIOUSLY. No, seriously, I really, really do. AND: seeing Hotch’s amusement over Gideon and the Chaplin reels was so !!!

I don’t even want to know what the finale is talking about because I saw the pre-air synopsis and had to resist the urge to roll my eyes. A lot.

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» CSI, 7x22, Leapin’ Lizards.
» 7x23, The Good, The Bad and The Dominatrix.

The latter episode dealt with the issue I had with the former which is: OK, GRISSOM IS NOT THE MINIATURE KILLER. He’s just interested in the impulses that make miniature recreations interesting as a hobby. So. Shut up everyone who thought even for a second that Gil was actually the MK. (Although, and I loved this, Keppler totally pegged Gil’s inner psyche as a sociopath. Man. I miss you, Keppler.)

Leapin’ Lizards was obviously this half-season’s funny-run which is why the music was all random with the chord drops and what have you. It was both funny and weird, and featured Veronica Mars’ dad which made it vaguely watchable. All-in-all, yay. Not completely because you invariably had to spend a lot of time thinking WTF? but it worked out.

The Good, The Bad and The Dominatrix upset me SO MUCH. I’m a Gil/Sara shipper, it’s not a secret; I had a couple of issues with them becoming canon but overall it’s been nicely dealt with, even in this episode. BUT. Oh man. What on earth have they done to Lady Heather? She went from being this powerfully assertive female figure, in control of her sexual desires and passions, in control of her life to a suicidal whatever. That is appalling, and a complete ruination of an interesting and vivid character. Also: completely fucking cheap, and I was not impressed.

(Yay for Continuity, though, because hey! Catherine remembered the S1 anthropologist! What was with Catherine, anyway. She was so fucking gabby.)

Colour me unimpressed.

Also, also: NO SPOILERS FOR THE FINALE, PLEASE. I mean, I’ve heard a few things that make me really very angry but they’re also sort of irrelevant. I have another Sara-meta post to make but I’m saving it for after the finale so that I can be complete. If what I’ve heard comes to fruition, I’ll be so disappointed, and not just as a fan but as someone who loves narrative. This will make more sense after the episode airs, I swear.

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» CSI: NY, 3x21, Past Imperfect.
» 3x22, Cold Reveal.
» 3x23, Comes Around.

OH, MAC.

(No, actually, oh, Sheldon. You are so cute! That little ‘that was me’ prowess hand-gesture he makes towards Lindsay when Peyton reveals that he still holds the record for time taken to remove a human from something mechanical was BEAUTIFUL, WEIRD and WONDERFUL. Oh, Sheldon!)

Back to Mac: oh boy. Past Imperfect was pretty difficult to watch, all things considered, because I really hated seeing Mac become so self-destructive. It’s something the show has been leading up to for three whole seasons, and it’s executed in an appropriately damning way, but it’s still sad to watch happen.

Stella’s HIV results came back in that episode, too, and watching her genuine surprise and subsequent relief was beautiful. I think Stella Bonasera – her specifically, not Melina Kanakaredes especially – is so beautiful, and the past year has been so brutal on her in a very quiet way. She’s so rational about the whole ordeal, too, and she’s so loving and giving, to Mac, to Lindsay, to Sheldon, that I was pleased for her and with her when Adam gave her the news. And Adam, too, was beautiful in that scene. His response, then, to Mac was horrible and saddening, and his instinctive defensive posture was a nice touch of acting linking back to the idea of his father being a bully.

In terms of Mac’s story, Cold Reveal was really good, too, and I couldn’t decide if we were supposed to completely side with him, especially when he leashes out at Jacob Carter (okay, okay: Police Inspector Whatever) when the guy seems to genuinely be on his side. I thought the implication that Mac was actually in the wrong was wonderful, and I wish that they’d played a little more with that. Except they really didn’t: Comes Around undid all of the ambiguities in the plot, setting up a Mac-good/Carter-bad story which felt somewhat cheap. All season we’ve been seeing that whatever Mac thinks, he does actually get pretty emotionally involved in his cases and now this reversal suggests that doesn’t matter because he was right and they were wrong. What happened to all the grey areas? (Also: when Mac is talking to Stella about how she’s better at the politics – that’s a bit of a turnaround, isn’t it? I mean, wasn’t Stella the one who was having disciplinary issues in the first season whilst Mac was telling her to play nice? Am I the only one who remembers that episode?) Anyway, the close of the episode was too neat. I hope they confront Mac with his emotional entanglement eventually, though, some time next season, because he needs it and the storyline is too good.

Other things of note: the end of Cold Reveal was really touching (especially if you consider non-closure is a beef with Mac, re: Clare); Danny FOR THE WIN in the hearing – “Can you read the highlighted portion?” “Sure.” – and Flack was interesting (I’m still not entirely certain that I buy all of Flack’s anger and issues because as I’ve said below, his gratitude to Mac for saving his life has to be pretty high, and whilst I understand the antagonism re: the notebook, I also think that Flack ultimately knows that Mac did the right thing, which I guess is what the scene in the bar was all about. It’s still contradictory, though.) Stella’s story was wonderfully quiet, and I think continuity with her character has been so strong. Hawkes was Hawkes, and fabulous. Next season I’d like to see more of Lindsay, especially as it’ll be her third year and she won’t be pregnant. Let’s steer away from the Danny-story and give her some consistency, eh?

The pre-air synopsis made me roll my eyes, but I’m still pretty excited about it. I’m pretty easy that way, heh.

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» Grey’s Anatomy, 3x24, Testing 1-2-3.

I know I’m one of the few people on the planet who actually thinks Meredith’s tale of woe is not only plausible but watchable, but seriously, having your father give you that kind of crap? You have to have some sympathy there. (Cristina was so—I love her. “I can’t deal with this. Meredith and I don’t fail things.” SO TRUE.)

Theoretically, I understand what Derek’s issues are, but as I’ve said before, what-the-fuck-ever because in compare to Mer, he really is being pretty selfish this time around. What the hell with the woman in the bar? (I think I know the reveal there – yeah, thanks TWoP – but I could be wrong). No, no, no. You don’t have the right to do that. You don’t get sympathy. I think TWoP accurately conveys this issue:

Derek walks down the hall with a chart, and sees Meredith sitting in the room taking the test. And then he sees the other interns sitting on a stairwell waiting for her to finish. And he looks troubled. I'm starting to hate this guy. Just a few episodes ago he told her that he couldn't breathe for her, which I think communicated fairly strongly that he didn't want her to rely on him for everything. And now she's standing on her own feet and letting her friends help her when she needs it, and he acts all disappointed that she doesn't want him to be her savior. His hair is not pretty enough to make up for him being such an inconsistent prick. [source.]

The Ava/Jane Doe/Whatever Her Name Is story is actually really great, and I love Alex more and more as the show continues. Addison’s woes bore me; the Chief’s ex-wife made me feel really sad; the climbers made me shudder because I can see where that tragedy is heading. I want Bailey to get the job, dammit. I want her to get it over Callie and Kali Rocha’s character. Not that I don’t think Callie can’t do it, but I think Bailey has more seniority there and how undermining would it be for Callie to get it?

Do not get me started on George and Izzie (and Callie). Just—don’t. I don’t even know what to do with that plot any more. It makes me pretty angry, actually. I have NO SYMPATHY for you people. You made your own troubles and Izzie, you are not cute. You’re just rude. Whatever.

(Cristina’s wedding – oh boy. OH BOY. I’m totally excited, obviously. I love finale season.)

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» Law & Order: Criminal Intent, 4x02, The Posthumous Collection.
» 5x04, Unchained
» 6x21, Endgame.

So, obviously I blame ivinnuna for this sudden need to watch more of this show, but I’m not going to complain because, hey, Criminal Intent! Good TV!

I watched 5x04 because I randomly found it in iTunes when I went to play my copy of TBD and got sidetracked by it. It’s a Logan&Barek episode, and boy do I ever miss Barek. I’m about to watch the double episode (5x05-06) again because not only is it a great episode with everyone in tow, but it has some brilliant Goren&Eames plottage which makes me happy. But the episode is a good one and when that dirty cop basically tries to sell his daughter to Logan I can’t suppress the shudder that runs through me. I also love how quietly probing Barek is, not to mention the way that she talks to herself. Annabella Sciorra, for the win.

I went to find 4x02 because it supposedly had Gary Sinise in it, except this was a big fat lie. The only reason I thought it might have been plausible is because he, Erbe’s husband and Jeff Perry (Meredith’s dad in GA) were the co-founders of The Steppenwolf Theatre Company. Regardless of Sinise’s obvious absence, it was a good episode, and easy to watch. I find that CI episodes zip by when I watch them on the laptop because I don’t have the ads to remind me that time has been passing so I get pretty engrossed in the plot. The opposite is true of every other fandom I follow, so who knows what’s going on there. The case was about a German photographer whose latest piece of work showed pictures of dead women. His murderer was also the guy who murdered the women; he’d been abused by the women in his family as a child. It was one of those stories that was both horrible and excellent viewing.

No new NCIS this week which is why I watched the season 6 finale. The plot actually resembled the plot in 4x02 which both amused and delighted me because they took what were essentially the same elements and played them completely differently.

Firstly, in the shallow department: Eames’ hair goes through various acrobatics during the episode. She’s so awesome. I loved her increasing frustration with the death-row inmate, and the way she just wanted to clear out whilst Goren – OH, GOREN - was trying to get to grips with his mother’s imminent death and this man’s quiet torture of him. As soon as we saw his mother’s photo, I knew that there had to be some sort of familial connection there (which is pretty cheap, but I’m pretty easy). The most painful aspect of the episode had to be Goren’s fragile relationship with Eames, though. She goes to bat for him, he asks her to trust him and there’s ever this increasing notion that whilst Alex is the only one to temper him (and I really do feel that now that his mother has died, Alex is his whole world) Goren’s distance from her means that eventually he’s going to drop off the deep end and Alex is not going to be able to stop him. They have a powerful onscreen partnership that transcends the necessity for sexual encounters. They’re a tight unit but they’re also quite obviously a mess, especially since the episode where Goren just storms out and when he returns, Eames just has to take it. If something were to happen to Goren, I think everyone knows that Eames would take it hard, but she’d deal with it: she consistently shows that ability to just mow on (and hey, she’s a widow, she’s done it before – that wouldn’t make it easier, but it shows resilience). If something were to happen to Eames, it would be the end of Goren. It’s the kind of thing where years later Eames would remember him tiredly and fondly, and she’d never recapture it, but she’d just move on. That, or she wouldn’t deal with it, but she’d snap years later. This sounds silly, but I wonder about the longevity of that partnership, and the intensity of it. They’ve really only been partners for as long as they’ve been on screen, which is pretty intense.

I wish we’d seen Eames and Mrs Goren meet because that would have been unbelievably wonderful. When Goren tells Alex that his mother wants to meet her, that beat in the car was marvellous. The last scene was heartbreaking, and I think if it had been anyone else, I would be pretty annoyed at it, but D’Onofrio brings real character to Bobby that even when he’s being selfish, I’m sympathetic to him.

Continuity! The guy who brings Goren to the inmate? The guy from one of the best episodes of CI ever – 2x14, Probability. If you haven’t seen that episode, you really should. It’s a perfect balance of humour and drama, and honestly my favourite episode; it’s also an episode that gets referenced quite a bit. I’m pretty certain Goren references Wally Stevens in the S3 episode in which Eames has the baby? (Actually, season 2 is pretty much for the win. It’s a great season of television.)

I wish my viewing of this show was less sporadic. Honestly, I’ve seen S1-2, ¼ of S3, a smattering of S4, ¾ of S5 and the first and last episodes of S6 (oh, and that Thanksgiving episode). Crazy.

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» NCIS, 4x23, Trojan Horse.

La Grenouille is Jenny’s father? Or La Grenouille knew Jenny’s father? Hmm.

Oh, Gibbs. The latest episode was bizarrely filler-ish. I mean, it had important issues for the finale, I know (and I now have a crush on the CIA guy, so typical) but it was still pretty scatty for such a late-season episode. Then again, of the previous three seasons, only Hiatus was really that big a deal in terms of penultimate episodes. (S.W.A.K. doesn’t count because it was still self-contained and pretty slow moving.) Ziva for the win! “Did you compare me to your mother? Permission to shoot him!”

Jeanne, Jeanne, Jeanne: you continue to bore me which is such a shame because I thought you might be interesting. In other news: d’aw, Abby and McGee! Also: Abby and Ducky! This cast is so much love.

But yeah, bring on the finale. I want this whole frog thing to get wrapped up already. The suspense is hurting my head – I can’t deal with speculation!

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» Numb3rs, 3x22, Under Pressure
» 3x23, Money for Nothing.

Oh, for fuck’s— look, there’s nothing wrong with Aya Sumika. There isn’t. I think she’s very pretty; I think she’s had a bit of a rough deal with the writers on this show because she’s more 2-D than paper, but whatever. I have no objection to her, and I have NO objection to Liz Warner, or to Don having a girlfriend. But for the love of whatever: THEY HAVE NO CHEMISTRY. When Don tells Liz that he’s crazy about her, I don’t believe it, not for a second. It’s so plastic! Gimmicky!

That aside, Money for Nothing was a pretty good episode, and whilst I think Charlie severely missed the point in that therapy session (yes, okay, to him Don was where everything great was happening, but in the end, his walking off became all about him which is what Don – understandably – resented) I did enjoy seeing the two of them trying to work things out.

Oh, Colby. What the fuck? lol. I wish they’d make him less of misogynistic ass. Or at the very least, make him consistent. Sometimes he is, sometimes he’s vaguely sensitive. I don’t even know anymore. David, though, I love David so much. They need to use him more. (I miss Megan. That should be implied, but I’m putting it in print to make sure people know.)

WHERE IS LARRY? I mean, really.

And, just to be awkward, I’m apparently doing this backwards: Under Pressure was okay, too, although again: Alan needs to get over himself. I knew that CID guy was one of the culprits if only because Palladino used to be on ER and high-ranking guest stars tend to be culprits. That’s just how it works. I liked the double-double-crossing, though I wasn’t so enamoured by Charlie’s vigour for the case. David did what he thought was right; it’s not Charlie’s place to be mad, it’s Don’s. So, Charlie: you can get over yourself, too.

I’m really excited for the finale this Friday. I’ve seen one of the names on the guest star list and I want to know how it got there. Also: Megan will be back! D’aw. (I did have more to say about 3x23, but I’ve forgotten. By the looks of this post, that’s likely a good thing.)

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» The Unit, 2x23, Paradise Lost.

Freefall was a really, really random episode as far as Bob and Jonas were concerned, but I think I talked about that episode already.

I love how out-of-the-blue the finale seemed, even though it really wasn’t, what with Mack’s breakdown (his name is Macdonald. Ilu), Bob and the CIA and all the hints regarding Jonas’ shady past or whatever. Is it wrong that I’m sorely amused by Mrs. Tom Ryan walking out on her marriage a year after its inception? I thought I understood their relationship, and her leaving makes sense, but overall, I’m still sitting here shaking my head.

CHARLES. OH, CHARLES! Please come back? And how much do I love

Bob and Kim once again showing that they have the most normal marriage in the whole set (Jonas gave Molly a gun, prepped her for war and then sent her a CODED MESSAGE. That is not a normal state of affairs). Shallow: I’m generally not interested in Bob but since he’s grown his hair out a little, heh. Maybe I am.

In other news, Kim is so fucking sensible compared to Tiffy that I really have to wonder why anyone is friends with Mrs Gerhardt. I mean, seriously, cutting herself? And Mack – what was that? The two of them are suited, obviously; they both fixate. Mack is all ‘Affair! Affair!’ and Tiffy (goddammit, woman, you’re such an idiot. Sometimes I like you [coin episode, for example] but mostly I spend a lot of time wondering how your head is wired) is all, ‘Wilson! Wilson!’ You know, I don’t understand her at all. At the beginning of the season, she made the decision that she wanted to stay where she was and that she wanted to work at her marriage. And then all of this. CRAZY WOMAN. And Mack! What makes you such an asshole? I really hope they sort this storyline out once and for all next season because what a yawn.

Lastly, I really loved the dramatic set up of watching each of the men sort out their affairs – their secret compartments, the way they burned their papers, all of it. That was intense to watch, more so than the reveal that Bob was being hired to track Jonas, because who didn’t see that coming?

To conclude: I actually really enjoy this show. It’s the one show, week-on-week, that I watch as soon as I get it. I don’t participate in the fandom, I just enjoy it, and a lot of that comes from the fact that it’s not really a serialisation. Sure, you have to know some of the previous plots to understand some of the later ones – that’s where the overarching season arc comes through – but mostly the episodes feel pretty standalone and, wonderfully, the series has managed to retain its ‘brand-new’ feeling, even though its just concluded its second season. I love that. Furthermore, the week-on-week plots are engaging and interesting, mixing action with great dialogue and an interrogation of basic ethics. So I’m looking forward to a third season, preferably with 100% less Tiffy-idiocy.

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This is going to sound weird but even though I’ve seen spec for the finale episodes, I don’t like talking about them. I’ll talk to you about the episodes I’ve seen, but I’m speculation-phobic, so. Yeah.

And now I have to go and do actual work.

Comments

[snowpenguin545.livejournal.com]

It’s a Logan&Barek episode, and boy do I ever miss Barek.
*sobs* This makes me want to go searching for the dvd that I have the double episode taped on. And then after that I'm going to read my semi-eames/barek fic. I miss Barek!!

I wish my viewing of this show was less sporadic.
You and me both. I have yet to see s2 (I think I may add that to my netflix queue) and I don't watch Logan/Wheeler episodes (not because I think they're bad...I just don't). I'm a bad CI fan :(