TV Programme: Prison Break
Season: 2
Episode: 14
Date I watched this episode: 29/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 1 day.
This was originally the first episode of Prison Break after the Christmas break, and served to set up the new state of affairs: Kellerman has joined Michael and Lincoln, and there is a clear power battle going on as to who is in charge. The initial sequence reminded me of Terminator 2, where Arnie breaks John out of the situation, and then a while down the road, John makes Arnie pull over and asks him what the hell is going on. A similar thing happens here; Michael and Lincoln are forced to stay concealed out of necessity but then the knives are out once they are beyond the range of law enforcement.
I think it's rather out-of-character for Paul to go back for Michael and Lincoln. After all he could have executed his plan "on his own". It's a bit of a stretch to think Paul was trying to actually do the right thing by approaching the brothers, but maybe he just felt he needed some extra help, who knows? Anyway it all went wrong in the end, and I'm sure sparks will fly in the next episode because they have lost seemingly their only chance to exonerate Lincoln. The next step would be to contact Sara Tancredi...but Sara is going to be extremely annoyed/confused/angry when she finds out Michael is working with Paul.
Alexander Mahone was a bit below par in this episode. He was pretty naïve to think he could just walk away from The Company, especially when they had threatened his family before. He knows what a character Bill Kim is. About that, I didn't understand what Mr Kim meant when he said "don't bury them". He repeated it more than once and still Kellerman responded with "I'll call you when they're in the ground". We'll probably never find out though, as Mr Kim now knows that Kellerman has gone rogue.
Susan Hollander held her own well in this episode. I think the T-Bag storyline was more interesting than usual. I don't quite know what T-Bag was expecting to accomplish by coming back to see her, whether he really thought they could be a family again, what his endgame is or if he even has one. He has $5,000,000 and surely he doesn't want to throw it all away for something that won't work out? Especially now, where the entire family are tied up and prisoner in their own house. He is a very calculated psychopath.
As usual, the C-Note and Brad threads were less interesting. But overall this was a good episode, not outstanding, but kept me on the edge and set some direction.
Sunday, 29 March 2009
Saturday, 28 March 2009
[PRB] The Killing Box
TV Programme: Prison Break
Season: 2
Episode: 13
Date I watched this episode: 28/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: Less than 1 day.
This episode was the Christmas midseason finale of this season; after it aired in late November 2006, the show took an 8 week break from broadcast. As I predicted last episode, it marked a turning point for Paul's character, where he joined forces with the rebels. However the show did a pretty good job of convincing me that he was going to decide to stay with The Company, it really had me fooled until the last minute. And Paul made the right decision, as Mahone would have killed him otherwise. As for the brothers, they actually have quite a lot to thank The Company for; they have saved them from arrest more than once now.
The bulk of this episode was taken up with tense looks between Michael, Lincoln and Mahone. This actually came off quite well, as we knew something big was about to come and it just built up that tension. As the episode drew to a close, all the card were thrown on the table as far as Mahone and Kellerman were concerned.
I don't know if Mahone himself is dead or not. I really hope he isn't, it would be a tragedy to this show, over and above the tragic deaths of Abruzzi and Tweener. He's also the only one who knows what just happened with Kellerman, and so he's still valuable to The Company for that reason.
I don't know who on earth the man in the room with Bill Kim is. That man who never speaks but only writes notes...perhaps he is the boss of The Company? For such a powerful organisation to have a leader who can't speak, quite unlikely, but again I am going to give the writers some leeway here, as they have done so many things well this season. Certainly from a dramatic perspective he seems to be quite a formidable character. He is credited as "Pad Man", which reminds me of the early days of Caroline Reynolds when she was credited as "The Garlic Cutter" to disguise her identity.
Bradley, Bradley, what a mess you have got yourself into? The episode closed with him stuck in a cell with that sick convict Tweener had been locked up with earlier. As before though I don't even care, I'd rather he was just not shown on here anymore than punished. He really is the bane of this show.
T-Bag finally found Susan Hollander, and entered her house unarmed...what is his plan? She obviously feels threatened by him, but if he wants redemption then he is going about it the wrong way. If he wants revenge, then why didn't he bring a gun?
There would have been a lot to look forward to for 2006 fans of this show (and incidentally I would have been a fan back then, but probably only just getting to the end of the first season). Not just Paul and the brothers, but also what was Sara scratching into that mirror? What is T-Bag going to do now? Where will Sucre go? And where the hell is Charles Patoshik?
This show is good at making long stories still seem like short ones. The hints that are dropped throughout, add up to something which is only properly viewed when you look back across the whole season. Unlike 24 and Damages, I can look back across the first half of this season and don't find loads of story threads which are now totally irrelevant. And that's the brilliance of the writing on this show, and what keeps me coming back for more.
Season: 2
Episode: 13
Date I watched this episode: 28/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: Less than 1 day.
This episode was the Christmas midseason finale of this season; after it aired in late November 2006, the show took an 8 week break from broadcast. As I predicted last episode, it marked a turning point for Paul's character, where he joined forces with the rebels. However the show did a pretty good job of convincing me that he was going to decide to stay with The Company, it really had me fooled until the last minute. And Paul made the right decision, as Mahone would have killed him otherwise. As for the brothers, they actually have quite a lot to thank The Company for; they have saved them from arrest more than once now.
The bulk of this episode was taken up with tense looks between Michael, Lincoln and Mahone. This actually came off quite well, as we knew something big was about to come and it just built up that tension. As the episode drew to a close, all the card were thrown on the table as far as Mahone and Kellerman were concerned.
I don't know if Mahone himself is dead or not. I really hope he isn't, it would be a tragedy to this show, over and above the tragic deaths of Abruzzi and Tweener. He's also the only one who knows what just happened with Kellerman, and so he's still valuable to The Company for that reason.
I don't know who on earth the man in the room with Bill Kim is. That man who never speaks but only writes notes...perhaps he is the boss of The Company? For such a powerful organisation to have a leader who can't speak, quite unlikely, but again I am going to give the writers some leeway here, as they have done so many things well this season. Certainly from a dramatic perspective he seems to be quite a formidable character. He is credited as "Pad Man", which reminds me of the early days of Caroline Reynolds when she was credited as "The Garlic Cutter" to disguise her identity.
Bradley, Bradley, what a mess you have got yourself into? The episode closed with him stuck in a cell with that sick convict Tweener had been locked up with earlier. As before though I don't even care, I'd rather he was just not shown on here anymore than punished. He really is the bane of this show.
T-Bag finally found Susan Hollander, and entered her house unarmed...what is his plan? She obviously feels threatened by him, but if he wants redemption then he is going about it the wrong way. If he wants revenge, then why didn't he bring a gun?
There would have been a lot to look forward to for 2006 fans of this show (and incidentally I would have been a fan back then, but probably only just getting to the end of the first season). Not just Paul and the brothers, but also what was Sara scratching into that mirror? What is T-Bag going to do now? Where will Sucre go? And where the hell is Charles Patoshik?
This show is good at making long stories still seem like short ones. The hints that are dropped throughout, add up to something which is only properly viewed when you look back across the whole season. Unlike 24 and Damages, I can look back across the first half of this season and don't find loads of story threads which are now totally irrelevant. And that's the brilliance of the writing on this show, and what keeps me coming back for more.
[PRB] Disconnect
TV Programme: Prison Break
Season: 2
Episode: 12
Date I watched this episode: 28/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 3 days.
This episode kicked off really well with the explanation of how Aldo and Michael had met before. It's something that they could have just thrown away easily as a passing glance, but they really tied in a lot of story here: Michael's confession that he'd watched a man die when he was a child, Michael's intuition for breaking out of places... The way the scenes were cut together, to make you think Aldo was the foster father, was excellent. The opening sequence in general was brilliant.
The title of the episode presumably refers to Michael's attempts to establish a connection with Sara's cellphone. The ending of the episode was heartbreaking; Michael had tried so hard to get through to Sara and then didn't manage it in the end. I'm sure the two will meet up again in future though.
Alexander Mahone was great in this episode once more. I think William Fitchner is so amazing at acting in silence. The scene when he looks around the desert shack is a beautiful piece of television, yet no lines are spoken in the whole scene. He can tell so much with his facial expressions and body language. He's clearly a man on the edge now, and as of the end of this episode, within inches of his quarry.
The other two storylines in this episode: C-Note and Brad, were not great. The C-Note story was just too simple and predictable, although it still left me feeling sad for him at the end. As far as Brad is concerned, I just don't really care what happens to him anymore. He is too much of a two-dimensional character who has no ethics whatsoever, and contrasted to the brilliant Mahone, he just doesn't measure up one bit.
The next episode is going to be very interesting. It's hard to see how Sucre is going to escape from the inevitable plane crash, or how Michael and Lincoln will escape from Mahone who now looks set to kill them; there is no Aldo to save them now (although I suppose Jane is still out there). Also I don't know what's next for Paul. Surely he has come to the end of the road with The Company, and must now join the rebels. I'd be sad to see his character go, and I think the next episode he appears in will be a turning point for him. Overall, I really enjoyed this episode and I think there is much to look forward to this season.
Season: 2
Episode: 12
Date I watched this episode: 28/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 3 days.
This episode kicked off really well with the explanation of how Aldo and Michael had met before. It's something that they could have just thrown away easily as a passing glance, but they really tied in a lot of story here: Michael's confession that he'd watched a man die when he was a child, Michael's intuition for breaking out of places... The way the scenes were cut together, to make you think Aldo was the foster father, was excellent. The opening sequence in general was brilliant.
The title of the episode presumably refers to Michael's attempts to establish a connection with Sara's cellphone. The ending of the episode was heartbreaking; Michael had tried so hard to get through to Sara and then didn't manage it in the end. I'm sure the two will meet up again in future though.
Alexander Mahone was great in this episode once more. I think William Fitchner is so amazing at acting in silence. The scene when he looks around the desert shack is a beautiful piece of television, yet no lines are spoken in the whole scene. He can tell so much with his facial expressions and body language. He's clearly a man on the edge now, and as of the end of this episode, within inches of his quarry.
The other two storylines in this episode: C-Note and Brad, were not great. The C-Note story was just too simple and predictable, although it still left me feeling sad for him at the end. As far as Brad is concerned, I just don't really care what happens to him anymore. He is too much of a two-dimensional character who has no ethics whatsoever, and contrasted to the brilliant Mahone, he just doesn't measure up one bit.
The next episode is going to be very interesting. It's hard to see how Sucre is going to escape from the inevitable plane crash, or how Michael and Lincoln will escape from Mahone who now looks set to kill them; there is no Aldo to save them now (although I suppose Jane is still out there). Also I don't know what's next for Paul. Surely he has come to the end of the road with The Company, and must now join the rebels. I'd be sad to see his character go, and I think the next episode he appears in will be a turning point for him. Overall, I really enjoyed this episode and I think there is much to look forward to this season.
[DMG] Look What He Dug Up This Time
TV Programme: Damages
Season: 2
Episode: 12
Date I watched this episode: 27/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 4 days.
In this penultimate episode, we had several stories, including the truth about what happened with Danny and his wife that night, Tom being brought into the conspiracy, Dave Pell coming out of the woodwork, and Wes's continuing failed attempts to kill Ellen. This made for a fairly compelling episode, but it feels like too little too late.
In truth, quite a lot of the supposedly shocking revelations in this episode were things we knew already. Were we the viewers supposed to be shocked when we heard that the GPS co-ordinates corresponded to a state, a time and a day? There was a decent amount of screentime spent cracking these codes, but we already knew what they meant, and so from a viewing perspective this was a pointless exercise.
Obviously I've spoken before about Danny's real motives and these were indeed revealed in this episode. Again it seems like a long time coming - Danny basically disappeared for half the season, and the thing with his wife seemed to have been forgotten about. In fact I'd all-but forgotten that Danny was Michael's father, until they had that conversation in this episode. I do truly believe now that Danny is actually trying to set things right. I don't think the writers have the stomach to paint Danny as a double-agent now, although if this was last season, this would have been totally on the table.
One thing I can give them is that they did pull something unexpected off with that murder. I was always wondering in my mind between whether Danny killed his wife or Kendrick's thugs did it. But the truth is, both are right. Danny started it, and the "closer" finished it. I do think Christine was unbelievably naïve in trying to get more involved with these people who were going to kill her own daughter, and in that sense she brought it on herself. But now, Danny is going to have a redemptive thread, turning himself in and hopefully exposing Kendrick for what he is.
It was a bit bad timing bringing Tom Shayes in and making him miss his wife giving birth. I think this was overly ruthless and I can't imagine Ellen doing this, but I suppose she has got desperate. She has realised that she is of less use to the FBI right now given her closeness to Patty. It was well-done dramatically when Tom was brought in, kind of reminded me of Marcus Dixon being told that SD-6 wasn't part of the CIA (in Alias).
Patty Hewes's character is still undergoing development. She got uncharacteristically angry both with Phil and with Tom, and seemed to be trying to restrain herself with Michael. Is this UNR thing still about redemption for her in the attempted murder of Ellen? She doesn't actually seem to have a client (except for Frobisher, who has been absent recently) and the terms of the deal she offered Kendrick were all about a cleanup rather than any money exchanging hands. She seems to be trying to do the right thing, and getting very angry/upset when she has barriers in her way to do that, because she feels she has created them herself by her past actions? I don't know but she is a satisfyingly complex character.
I don't know what Wes is up to. He's demonstrated clearly that he doesn't have what it takes to kill Ellen. I would have thought his best move was to tell her what he knows and then the pair can take down Kendrick/Frobisher/Messer/anyone else, together. Perhaps this is where they end up with shooting Patty, but who knows.
The remote that Christine threw at Danny - I'm not sure what significance, if any, that this has: why did he want to bury it? When we were first shown that clip, it was implied that he was burning the original documents from the study, but actually he still had them. He's clutching the remote when he rings Kendrick's man, so perhaps it has some special significance that I missed.
The title of this episode was wrongly predicted by me yet again - it was Purcell's daughter speaking to him about their dog.
The next episode is the season finale (not currently given a title on the official website other than "Damages Season Finale"), though I probably won't be watching it for a while, til I can fit it into another Finale Day. Unfortunately, much of the footage in it we'll have seen already - stuff with Ellen and Patty in the room, Wes getting asked to leave, Tom and Ellen getting the gun, Tom telling Patty he's going to sue her for unlawful dismissal, etc. However hopefully there will be enough to slightly redeem this season from being the tragically inferior one it has become.
Season: 2
Episode: 12
Date I watched this episode: 27/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 4 days.
In this penultimate episode, we had several stories, including the truth about what happened with Danny and his wife that night, Tom being brought into the conspiracy, Dave Pell coming out of the woodwork, and Wes's continuing failed attempts to kill Ellen. This made for a fairly compelling episode, but it feels like too little too late.
In truth, quite a lot of the supposedly shocking revelations in this episode were things we knew already. Were we the viewers supposed to be shocked when we heard that the GPS co-ordinates corresponded to a state, a time and a day? There was a decent amount of screentime spent cracking these codes, but we already knew what they meant, and so from a viewing perspective this was a pointless exercise.
Obviously I've spoken before about Danny's real motives and these were indeed revealed in this episode. Again it seems like a long time coming - Danny basically disappeared for half the season, and the thing with his wife seemed to have been forgotten about. In fact I'd all-but forgotten that Danny was Michael's father, until they had that conversation in this episode. I do truly believe now that Danny is actually trying to set things right. I don't think the writers have the stomach to paint Danny as a double-agent now, although if this was last season, this would have been totally on the table.
One thing I can give them is that they did pull something unexpected off with that murder. I was always wondering in my mind between whether Danny killed his wife or Kendrick's thugs did it. But the truth is, both are right. Danny started it, and the "closer" finished it. I do think Christine was unbelievably naïve in trying to get more involved with these people who were going to kill her own daughter, and in that sense she brought it on herself. But now, Danny is going to have a redemptive thread, turning himself in and hopefully exposing Kendrick for what he is.
It was a bit bad timing bringing Tom Shayes in and making him miss his wife giving birth. I think this was overly ruthless and I can't imagine Ellen doing this, but I suppose she has got desperate. She has realised that she is of less use to the FBI right now given her closeness to Patty. It was well-done dramatically when Tom was brought in, kind of reminded me of Marcus Dixon being told that SD-6 wasn't part of the CIA (in Alias).
Patty Hewes's character is still undergoing development. She got uncharacteristically angry both with Phil and with Tom, and seemed to be trying to restrain herself with Michael. Is this UNR thing still about redemption for her in the attempted murder of Ellen? She doesn't actually seem to have a client (except for Frobisher, who has been absent recently) and the terms of the deal she offered Kendrick were all about a cleanup rather than any money exchanging hands. She seems to be trying to do the right thing, and getting very angry/upset when she has barriers in her way to do that, because she feels she has created them herself by her past actions? I don't know but she is a satisfyingly complex character.
I don't know what Wes is up to. He's demonstrated clearly that he doesn't have what it takes to kill Ellen. I would have thought his best move was to tell her what he knows and then the pair can take down Kendrick/Frobisher/Messer/anyone else, together. Perhaps this is where they end up with shooting Patty, but who knows.
The remote that Christine threw at Danny - I'm not sure what significance, if any, that this has: why did he want to bury it? When we were first shown that clip, it was implied that he was burning the original documents from the study, but actually he still had them. He's clutching the remote when he rings Kendrick's man, so perhaps it has some special significance that I missed.
The title of this episode was wrongly predicted by me yet again - it was Purcell's daughter speaking to him about their dog.
The next episode is the season finale (not currently given a title on the official website other than "Damages Season Finale"), though I probably won't be watching it for a while, til I can fit it into another Finale Day. Unfortunately, much of the footage in it we'll have seen already - stuff with Ellen and Patty in the room, Wes getting asked to leave, Tom and Ellen getting the gun, Tom telling Patty he's going to sue her for unlawful dismissal, etc. However hopefully there will be enough to slightly redeem this season from being the tragically inferior one it has become.
Friday, 27 March 2009
[24H] Day 7: 10:00pm - 11:00pm
TV Programme: 24
Season: 7
Episode: 15
Date I watched this episode: 27/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 4 days.
Strange that I was, only earlier today, reviewing an episode of Prison Break in which Michael Scofield's strong morals come out, and here we have the king of ruthlessness, Jack Bauer, in a similar moral dilemma. This time it was Tony Almeida who was really pushing Jack to make the same ruthless decision, but he took a chance, and saved the life of someone he'd sworn to protect, slightly compromising his mission in the process. Obviously Renee and Larry's morals, or perhaps the conversations with Senator Mayer, have had some effect on Jack.
The object of this dilemma was Carl Gadsen, played by Connor Trinneer, an actor we know well from Star Trek: Enterprise. That's the second Enterprise guest star we've had this season, interesting. Anyway it's pretty amazing that Carl actually survived; the show gave us all the tell-tale signs of a doomed character (showed him talking to his wife on the phone, he is clearly really naïve, etc) but then fooled us by having him survive after all.
There's definitely something going on with Tony. He has obviously had some involvement with Starkwood before, because Stokes (one of Hodges's operatives) recognised him. He's also giving those shady looks all over the place. But then it does beg the question of why he stays involved with this at all...and where even was he when Jack called in the last episode? He may have gone back to his old ways; he is very difficult to read.
This episode made you feel really quite sorry for Olivia, before the reveal of how evil she really is. She truly is playing everyone and she's bound to be found out...but she thinks she is serving her mother by doing this. I still think she is really hot though, so I want her to stick around! Ethan's speech to her was quite compelling and for the first time I really enjoyed Bob Gunton's performance. He made a very difficult decision here and I think given the information he had, it was the right one.
The internal politics going on at Starkwood is not a particularly interesting thread, and I can only assume that this is going to develop into something more interesting in a future episode. I suppose that it goes some way to explain why Hodges is doing the things he is doing, but it doesn't seem a valid justification for a man who supposedly finds tragedy in the loss of one single innocent soul.
This episode marked yet another transition; the "Jack on the run" storyline is pretty much over. Again if this season wasn't so fragmented, they could have played this story out for quite a long time, with murder after murder wrongly attributed to Jack. But as is the way, it only lasted a couple of episodes. Somehow though I think the revelation that Jack has been exposed to a biological agent will not go away easily. Then again, Jack has to survive to the next season so there has to be something weird going on here.
I'm not sure to what extent the morals story will continue through the second half of this season. In all seriousness, Jack should know that even if he had gone with his original plan and followed the truck then it might still have been airlifted out and he would have lost it. But he might still beat himself up about it.
I was glad to see a glimpse of Henry in this episode. In his current state, it's hard to imagine when he'd be able to get back into the main story, but maybe his influence as a father can radiate from just his hospital bed. In general, apart from perhaps the resolution to Jack's exposure to the biological agent, there doesn't seem to be much left to look forward to this season.
Season: 7
Episode: 15
Date I watched this episode: 27/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 4 days.
Strange that I was, only earlier today, reviewing an episode of Prison Break in which Michael Scofield's strong morals come out, and here we have the king of ruthlessness, Jack Bauer, in a similar moral dilemma. This time it was Tony Almeida who was really pushing Jack to make the same ruthless decision, but he took a chance, and saved the life of someone he'd sworn to protect, slightly compromising his mission in the process. Obviously Renee and Larry's morals, or perhaps the conversations with Senator Mayer, have had some effect on Jack.
The object of this dilemma was Carl Gadsen, played by Connor Trinneer, an actor we know well from Star Trek: Enterprise. That's the second Enterprise guest star we've had this season, interesting. Anyway it's pretty amazing that Carl actually survived; the show gave us all the tell-tale signs of a doomed character (showed him talking to his wife on the phone, he is clearly really naïve, etc) but then fooled us by having him survive after all.
There's definitely something going on with Tony. He has obviously had some involvement with Starkwood before, because Stokes (one of Hodges's operatives) recognised him. He's also giving those shady looks all over the place. But then it does beg the question of why he stays involved with this at all...and where even was he when Jack called in the last episode? He may have gone back to his old ways; he is very difficult to read.
This episode made you feel really quite sorry for Olivia, before the reveal of how evil she really is. She truly is playing everyone and she's bound to be found out...but she thinks she is serving her mother by doing this. I still think she is really hot though, so I want her to stick around! Ethan's speech to her was quite compelling and for the first time I really enjoyed Bob Gunton's performance. He made a very difficult decision here and I think given the information he had, it was the right one.
The internal politics going on at Starkwood is not a particularly interesting thread, and I can only assume that this is going to develop into something more interesting in a future episode. I suppose that it goes some way to explain why Hodges is doing the things he is doing, but it doesn't seem a valid justification for a man who supposedly finds tragedy in the loss of one single innocent soul.
This episode marked yet another transition; the "Jack on the run" storyline is pretty much over. Again if this season wasn't so fragmented, they could have played this story out for quite a long time, with murder after murder wrongly attributed to Jack. But as is the way, it only lasted a couple of episodes. Somehow though I think the revelation that Jack has been exposed to a biological agent will not go away easily. Then again, Jack has to survive to the next season so there has to be something weird going on here.
I'm not sure to what extent the morals story will continue through the second half of this season. In all seriousness, Jack should know that even if he had gone with his original plan and followed the truck then it might still have been airlifted out and he would have lost it. But he might still beat himself up about it.
I was glad to see a glimpse of Henry in this episode. In his current state, it's hard to imagine when he'd be able to get back into the main story, but maybe his influence as a father can radiate from just his hospital bed. In general, apart from perhaps the resolution to Jack's exposure to the biological agent, there doesn't seem to be much left to look forward to this season.
[AUK] Scrubbing Up
TV Programme: The Apprentice (UK)
Season: 5
Episode: 1
Date I watched this episode: 25/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 9 months, 14 days.
Team Leaders: Howard (Em-1) and Mona (Ig-1)
Winner: Empire
Ignite Boardroom: Mona, Debra, Anita
Fired: Anita
The One That Got Away: Debra
As I said in my pre-season post, there has been no candidate reels released for this season as yet. So...I feel as though I don't really know the characters that well. Last year I had something of an edge - I watched those candidate reels over and over, and reposted them to my YouTube channel, it really increased my level of hype. You see, the bad thing about an Apprentice season premiere is that there are just so many candidates...and not really any time to get to know them. For that reason, some of the candidates had practically no screentime in this episode, and when you did get a glimpse of them, you wondered "who is that?"
Nevertheless, it is quite a good strategy to keep your head down and not really do much in the first few episodes. It's no coincidence that the people in the boardroom were the team leader, the second-in-command, and the person in charge of figures. Anita made a fundamental mistake when she piped up during the boardroom post-mortem "I was the one with the calculator" - she really put herself in the limelight there.
My first impression of these candidates is that, particularly among the boys, there are no real strong characters. But it really is too early to tell. In the early sequences, like the cars on the way to the purchasing stage, or the video clips that were played, the guys seemed to actually have at least some character to them: particularly Noorul and Ben. It's pretty normal that these characters would be a bit supressed early on. The girls, on the other hand, have plenty of obviously strong characters: particularly Debra, Yasmina and Kate; others such as Kimberly have some potential but weren't shown much in the episode.
Howard does not seem to be a particularly interesting character; he seems to be a bit of a lightweight. Despite the fact that he claims to run 10 pubs, he has no control over the situations that arise. He says in an interview clip "people would be wrong to think I'm a pushover" - well that's exactly how he came across. Phillip seemed to be the real leader of this task; his negotiating skills looked good, and he seems to have more to him than the boring side, though we haven't seen much of this yet for the reasons outlined above.
This episode followed the now standard tradition of a girls team and a boys team, led by Nick and Margaret respectively. The teams have the names "Empire" and "Ignite" respectively, I think they are both good strong names, which is more than can be said for some earlier rubbish names ("First Forte" and "Invicta" come to mind). The music is the same as ever - I really love the soundtrack, it adds a very cool atmosphere. And Alan gave his usual introductory speech...though I'm not sure how much of it he wrote; some of the metaphors (Elton John, diamonds) seemed a little over his head. Definitely loved the repetition of the memory of the "matey" who "bottled it" though.
It was also good to see the "Bridge Café" location back - an absolute staple in The Apprentice's traditions; involved in the sequence at the end where the losing team eats at a dingey location while the winners enjoy their treat. As for that, the house they are in this time was really well-decorated, looks great, and the candidates were suitably impressed. It gets better every year!
Now down to business - the boardroom. I actually think Alan made the right decision. Anita clearly wasn't in this for the long-haul; she didn't know how this works. And she didn't seem to want to get her teeth into the task. Mona...wasn't that bad a team leader; she was actually quite nice with Kate and with Debra when they called up and gave her bad news. The main fault of Mona's was not making a business plan. Debra...well Adrian Chiles thinks she is evil, but I disagree. I think she is ruthless, but that's what you have to be to win this show. Claire Young from last year was ruthless, Katie Hopkins was evil, there is a difference. But then again I thought people were wrong about Katie to start with, so I'm prepared to be wrong again.
I think the dilemma here was quite intriguing though. Alan is someone who doesn't really like to be challenged on things, he is something of a control freak. If he asks someone to do something, I don't think he'd be happy if they contested it or stepped beyond their bounds. But he got annoyed with Anita for not challenging. In fact, as Adrian Chiles/Rufus Hound pointed out, Sir Alan seemed to change his tone when Anita said she should challenge more. In reality, she'd been asked to do a simple task and she did it, which is what Sir Alan would expect in his own business.
A couple of administration points for my reviews. First of all, the episodes of The Apprentice (UK) don't technically have titles. However when they are posted onto BBC Online they are given a title on there (though not on iPlayer, strangely enough), and that is the title I'm using to distinguish the episodes. Secondly, I'm going to denote people's teams by brackets after their name, followed by a number showing how many episodes they've been in that team during this season. This is just to give an indication (not necessarily a perfect one) of how strongly they are bonded to the other people in their team.
Overall this was not the best Apprentice episode ever; but I may change my mind on it in future when I've got to know the characters a little better. To promote this I'd like to see more screentime on the characters sitting around discussing things and less on them running around like headless chickens.
Season: 5
Episode: 1
Date I watched this episode: 25/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 9 months, 14 days.
Team Leaders: Howard (Em-1) and Mona (Ig-1)
Winner: Empire
Ignite Boardroom: Mona, Debra, Anita
Fired: Anita
The One That Got Away: Debra
As I said in my pre-season post, there has been no candidate reels released for this season as yet. So...I feel as though I don't really know the characters that well. Last year I had something of an edge - I watched those candidate reels over and over, and reposted them to my YouTube channel, it really increased my level of hype. You see, the bad thing about an Apprentice season premiere is that there are just so many candidates...and not really any time to get to know them. For that reason, some of the candidates had practically no screentime in this episode, and when you did get a glimpse of them, you wondered "who is that?"
Nevertheless, it is quite a good strategy to keep your head down and not really do much in the first few episodes. It's no coincidence that the people in the boardroom were the team leader, the second-in-command, and the person in charge of figures. Anita made a fundamental mistake when she piped up during the boardroom post-mortem "I was the one with the calculator" - she really put herself in the limelight there.
My first impression of these candidates is that, particularly among the boys, there are no real strong characters. But it really is too early to tell. In the early sequences, like the cars on the way to the purchasing stage, or the video clips that were played, the guys seemed to actually have at least some character to them: particularly Noorul and Ben. It's pretty normal that these characters would be a bit supressed early on. The girls, on the other hand, have plenty of obviously strong characters: particularly Debra, Yasmina and Kate; others such as Kimberly have some potential but weren't shown much in the episode.
Howard does not seem to be a particularly interesting character; he seems to be a bit of a lightweight. Despite the fact that he claims to run 10 pubs, he has no control over the situations that arise. He says in an interview clip "people would be wrong to think I'm a pushover" - well that's exactly how he came across. Phillip seemed to be the real leader of this task; his negotiating skills looked good, and he seems to have more to him than the boring side, though we haven't seen much of this yet for the reasons outlined above.
This episode followed the now standard tradition of a girls team and a boys team, led by Nick and Margaret respectively. The teams have the names "Empire" and "Ignite" respectively, I think they are both good strong names, which is more than can be said for some earlier rubbish names ("First Forte" and "Invicta" come to mind). The music is the same as ever - I really love the soundtrack, it adds a very cool atmosphere. And Alan gave his usual introductory speech...though I'm not sure how much of it he wrote; some of the metaphors (Elton John, diamonds) seemed a little over his head. Definitely loved the repetition of the memory of the "matey" who "bottled it" though.
It was also good to see the "Bridge Café" location back - an absolute staple in The Apprentice's traditions; involved in the sequence at the end where the losing team eats at a dingey location while the winners enjoy their treat. As for that, the house they are in this time was really well-decorated, looks great, and the candidates were suitably impressed. It gets better every year!
Now down to business - the boardroom. I actually think Alan made the right decision. Anita clearly wasn't in this for the long-haul; she didn't know how this works. And she didn't seem to want to get her teeth into the task. Mona...wasn't that bad a team leader; she was actually quite nice with Kate and with Debra when they called up and gave her bad news. The main fault of Mona's was not making a business plan. Debra...well Adrian Chiles thinks she is evil, but I disagree. I think she is ruthless, but that's what you have to be to win this show. Claire Young from last year was ruthless, Katie Hopkins was evil, there is a difference. But then again I thought people were wrong about Katie to start with, so I'm prepared to be wrong again.
I think the dilemma here was quite intriguing though. Alan is someone who doesn't really like to be challenged on things, he is something of a control freak. If he asks someone to do something, I don't think he'd be happy if they contested it or stepped beyond their bounds. But he got annoyed with Anita for not challenging. In fact, as Adrian Chiles/Rufus Hound pointed out, Sir Alan seemed to change his tone when Anita said she should challenge more. In reality, she'd been asked to do a simple task and she did it, which is what Sir Alan would expect in his own business.
A couple of administration points for my reviews. First of all, the episodes of The Apprentice (UK) don't technically have titles. However when they are posted onto BBC Online they are given a title on there (though not on iPlayer, strangely enough), and that is the title I'm using to distinguish the episodes. Secondly, I'm going to denote people's teams by brackets after their name, followed by a number showing how many episodes they've been in that team during this season. This is just to give an indication (not necessarily a perfect one) of how strongly they are bonded to the other people in their team.
Overall this was not the best Apprentice episode ever; but I may change my mind on it in future when I've got to know the characters a little better. To promote this I'd like to see more screentime on the characters sitting around discussing things and less on them running around like headless chickens.
[PRB] Bolshoi Booze
TV Programme: Prison Break
Season: 2
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 25/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 11 days.
This was a very interesting episode for Michael. He is not the typical ruthless protagonist, but has certain set morals which he has to bend to meet his ends, and they catch up to him in the long run. They really caught up to him in this episode, but he knows that, in his words, if he surrender's now he loses everything he loves. The show poses many moral dilemmas that I can really relate to, and Michael's righteousness is hard for me to decide on one way or the other.
This really shone through with the criminals in the desert. Now the outcome of this was very different to what Michael had expected. If he had retained the nitroglycerin, he would have given it to these guys, and who knows what they would have done with it. The storyline seemed a bit pointless, but it was a key point for Michael's character that he actually did the right thing here, against the recommendations of Sucre, and was rewarded for it.
Sucre and Scofield played off each other as well as ever here; the two have met up at various places in the country this season, some better than others, but the sequence where Sucre and Scofield took control of the desert shack was a great co-operarative scene for the two, who work well together better than Michael and Lincoln ever have.
Bill Kim got a lot more screentime in this episode. This idea of the antagonists and the protagonists speaking frankly to each other on the phone is a common device this season, but one that is well-utilised. Recently it was Michael and Alexander, here it is Lincoln and Mr Kim. Mr Kim even seems a bit scared, and is certainly very forceful with his manipulation of Lincoln and Paul Kellerman.
I felt that the situation with Sara Tancredi was well explained. Up until now we haven't had a decent explanation for why she is being hunted, but this just fitted in very smoothly to the overall storyline. Although: she has the key but has no idea where to use it!! Paul was seriously tested in this episode and surely he must have to change his loyalties in the next episode to resolve the current situation that he has left Sara for dead!
T-Bag has lost his hand again!! This is getting a bit silly, surely he can't get it back again now. Which means the writers are going to have to deal with one of their main characters not having a hand. Anyway T-Bag got back to the money and it's his now. I'm not sure who out of Bellick, Roy and T-Bag I'd rather have had the money. None of them will spend it particularly "wisely" but at least T-Bag is an incredibly complex character who we will get to see a little more into. Bellick and Roy, meanwhile, are stuck at the hospital for a while, which hopefully will mean they'll be out of the picture for a while; I'm getting a bit sick of them.
Jane seems like quite a minor character to be getting so much screentime. I wonder where her loyalties really lie. She seems like a cold assassin who might be loyal to someone else; and surely someone must have tipped The Company off as to where Aldo and Lincoln were meeting. Or maybe she just reminds me too much of Alias's Lauren Reed? Other mysteries to be resolved in the next episode: what is on that receipt that T-Bag found? And where have Aldo and Michael met before?
This season is really impressive to me, especially out of those I'm watching at the moment. 24 and Damages have both been quite disappointing, whereas this show keeps me sane....it really lives up to its reputation created by the first season, by following a compelling storyline that is woven episode-to-episode. I can't quite see where it's going but I'll put my trust in the writers, and I feel sure they'll come through for me.
Season: 2
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 25/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 11 days.
This was a very interesting episode for Michael. He is not the typical ruthless protagonist, but has certain set morals which he has to bend to meet his ends, and they catch up to him in the long run. They really caught up to him in this episode, but he knows that, in his words, if he surrender's now he loses everything he loves. The show poses many moral dilemmas that I can really relate to, and Michael's righteousness is hard for me to decide on one way or the other.
This really shone through with the criminals in the desert. Now the outcome of this was very different to what Michael had expected. If he had retained the nitroglycerin, he would have given it to these guys, and who knows what they would have done with it. The storyline seemed a bit pointless, but it was a key point for Michael's character that he actually did the right thing here, against the recommendations of Sucre, and was rewarded for it.
Sucre and Scofield played off each other as well as ever here; the two have met up at various places in the country this season, some better than others, but the sequence where Sucre and Scofield took control of the desert shack was a great co-operarative scene for the two, who work well together better than Michael and Lincoln ever have.
Bill Kim got a lot more screentime in this episode. This idea of the antagonists and the protagonists speaking frankly to each other on the phone is a common device this season, but one that is well-utilised. Recently it was Michael and Alexander, here it is Lincoln and Mr Kim. Mr Kim even seems a bit scared, and is certainly very forceful with his manipulation of Lincoln and Paul Kellerman.
I felt that the situation with Sara Tancredi was well explained. Up until now we haven't had a decent explanation for why she is being hunted, but this just fitted in very smoothly to the overall storyline. Although: she has the key but has no idea where to use it!! Paul was seriously tested in this episode and surely he must have to change his loyalties in the next episode to resolve the current situation that he has left Sara for dead!
T-Bag has lost his hand again!! This is getting a bit silly, surely he can't get it back again now. Which means the writers are going to have to deal with one of their main characters not having a hand. Anyway T-Bag got back to the money and it's his now. I'm not sure who out of Bellick, Roy and T-Bag I'd rather have had the money. None of them will spend it particularly "wisely" but at least T-Bag is an incredibly complex character who we will get to see a little more into. Bellick and Roy, meanwhile, are stuck at the hospital for a while, which hopefully will mean they'll be out of the picture for a while; I'm getting a bit sick of them.
Jane seems like quite a minor character to be getting so much screentime. I wonder where her loyalties really lie. She seems like a cold assassin who might be loyal to someone else; and surely someone must have tipped The Company off as to where Aldo and Lincoln were meeting. Or maybe she just reminds me too much of Alias's Lauren Reed? Other mysteries to be resolved in the next episode: what is on that receipt that T-Bag found? And where have Aldo and Michael met before?
This season is really impressive to me, especially out of those I'm watching at the moment. 24 and Damages have both been quite disappointing, whereas this show keeps me sane....it really lives up to its reputation created by the first season, by following a compelling storyline that is woven episode-to-episode. I can't quite see where it's going but I'll put my trust in the writers, and I feel sure they'll come through for me.
[DMG] London. Of Course.
TV Programme: Damages
Season: 2
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 24/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 10 days.
This episode focussed quite heavily on the character of Claire Maddox. This was a mistake from an overall production perspective, as Claire just can't carry an episode. Marcia Gay Harden only has one face in this series and one way of acting, and it just looks wrong in certain situations. In particular, it wasn't convincing that such a capable lawyer couldn't just act normal in front of Walter and Mitch; and it is incredible that the latter didn't pick up on this.
Kendrick on the other hand was amazing in this episode. It's pretty clear that he really is willing to lose everything over the company, and this is the fundamental problem that means Maddox is doomed from the word go. Definitely my favourite quote of the episode:
The other episode storyline was with Phil and the affair, which has been noted in a previous episode, although not much was made of it back then. I still don't quite know why Ellen sent those photos to Patty, and perhaps she doesn't either. But it was genius to turn this entire story into character development, because Patty is more annoyed that Phil "got sloppy" - something she is petrified of doing herself. I wonder what she will think when she realises she has got sloppy with Ellen, not realising Ellen has been working against her...
I still don't know what the point of the story with Michael's girlfriend is. It's not even a red herring for the main plot (like Lila DeMayo last season) but just seems to be a bit of a side-story to fill up some time.
At the end of this episode, Patty says that things are going to get "ugly". Well I would hope so - we have two episodes left and the build-up to the climax has not yet begun. Even the "I Lied, Too" scene is only gradually building up, we get a few seconds extra each time, which is not particularly satisfying and doesn't progress anything.
There are a couple of hints though here leading to some theories I have about the storyline. First of all, I think Patty has ulterior motives for shutting down the Frobisher investigation. She knows that Ellen will hire her own private investigator, and she somehow thinks she can get information that way...maybe the investigator is in her pocket. Secondly, I wonder as to how much involvement Danny and Walter still have. Claire believes that Patty can trust Danny now, but the true story of what happened with Christine has still not been revealed, and until it is, there is no way I can trust him.
As is tradition, the title of this episode was guessed wrongly yet again; it was spoken by Patty to Ellen. It was about Phil though so it's not all bad. Next is "Look what he dug up this time", which could well be Ellen talking to Katie about the private investigator.
I am starting to sound like a broken record about these episodes, but get a move on already!! It is not long now until this season will all be over, and the precious little screentime they have could be better spent than on a fairly boring character trying to take down Walter Kendrick.
Season: 2
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 24/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 10 days.
This episode focussed quite heavily on the character of Claire Maddox. This was a mistake from an overall production perspective, as Claire just can't carry an episode. Marcia Gay Harden only has one face in this series and one way of acting, and it just looks wrong in certain situations. In particular, it wasn't convincing that such a capable lawyer couldn't just act normal in front of Walter and Mitch; and it is incredible that the latter didn't pick up on this.
Kendrick on the other hand was amazing in this episode. It's pretty clear that he really is willing to lose everything over the company, and this is the fundamental problem that means Maddox is doomed from the word go. Definitely my favourite quote of the episode:
The other episode storyline was with Phil and the affair, which has been noted in a previous episode, although not much was made of it back then. I still don't quite know why Ellen sent those photos to Patty, and perhaps she doesn't either. But it was genius to turn this entire story into character development, because Patty is more annoyed that Phil "got sloppy" - something she is petrified of doing herself. I wonder what she will think when she realises she has got sloppy with Ellen, not realising Ellen has been working against her...
I still don't know what the point of the story with Michael's girlfriend is. It's not even a red herring for the main plot (like Lila DeMayo last season) but just seems to be a bit of a side-story to fill up some time.
At the end of this episode, Patty says that things are going to get "ugly". Well I would hope so - we have two episodes left and the build-up to the climax has not yet begun. Even the "I Lied, Too" scene is only gradually building up, we get a few seconds extra each time, which is not particularly satisfying and doesn't progress anything.
There are a couple of hints though here leading to some theories I have about the storyline. First of all, I think Patty has ulterior motives for shutting down the Frobisher investigation. She knows that Ellen will hire her own private investigator, and she somehow thinks she can get information that way...maybe the investigator is in her pocket. Secondly, I wonder as to how much involvement Danny and Walter still have. Claire believes that Patty can trust Danny now, but the true story of what happened with Christine has still not been revealed, and until it is, there is no way I can trust him.
As is tradition, the title of this episode was guessed wrongly yet again; it was spoken by Patty to Ellen. It was about Phil though so it's not all bad. Next is "Look what he dug up this time", which could well be Ellen talking to Katie about the private investigator.
I am starting to sound like a broken record about these episodes, but get a move on already!! It is not long now until this season will all be over, and the precious little screentime they have could be better spent than on a fairly boring character trying to take down Walter Kendrick.
Wednesday, 25 March 2009
[24H] Day 7: 9:00pm - 10:00pm
TV Programme: 24
Season: 7
Episode: 14
Date I watched this episode: 23/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 9 days.
This was something of a slow episode. In particular it was slow to start; but then they were dealing with the fallout of the last episode. Slow episodes are not such a bad thing sometimes. All too often 24 is rushing around like a headless chicken...
The most compelling and interesting story of this episode was the one between Jack and Senator Mayer. Since Mayer died at the end of this episode, it's good that they gave so much screentime to his character as a last chance. The frank and blunt conversation between Jack and Mater when they were sitting at the computer desk (and the followup conversation) was the absolute gem of this episode. Jack and Mayer had a proper man-to-man talk and managed to make some headway. The death of Mayer was shocking and I was quite upset because I felt like I wanted Mayer to continue. The point about Jack "learning to trust the institutions he's sacrificed so much for", was very good and I hope they will continue this theme on.
The ensuing fight between Quinn and Jack was also great and Quinn is a great character, who also died in this episode. The fact that Jack has met an equal is a really good storyline, and it's a testament to how fragmented this season is that that story only continued for a couple of episodes.
The villain of Jonas Hodges was fleshed out a bit more in this episode than even Dubaku or Juma was. He seems to have some morals and believe he is fighting a righteous battle, rather than the thugs that Juma and Dubaku are/were. He doesn't necessarily have the cool factor, but he makes you think.
Obviously the other big side-story in this episode was the interplay between Allison, Ethan and Olivia. Sprague Grayden was excellent as always, and Ethan was just boring and average. He's rather in the doghouse right now, but I still think there is some scope for Olivia to make some serious mistakes.
It looks like this story will also come to an end soon; the weapons are in place and it'll only be a few episodes before we see a new villain and a new plot. This fragmentation is not particularly believable and doesn't make for a gripping and flowing storyline; this season feels like a series of short films. Unfortunately there's not much they can do to pull it back now, but I think that'll always be how I'll remember this season.
Season: 7
Episode: 14
Date I watched this episode: 23/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 9 days.
This was something of a slow episode. In particular it was slow to start; but then they were dealing with the fallout of the last episode. Slow episodes are not such a bad thing sometimes. All too often 24 is rushing around like a headless chicken...
The most compelling and interesting story of this episode was the one between Jack and Senator Mayer. Since Mayer died at the end of this episode, it's good that they gave so much screentime to his character as a last chance. The frank and blunt conversation between Jack and Mater when they were sitting at the computer desk (and the followup conversation) was the absolute gem of this episode. Jack and Mayer had a proper man-to-man talk and managed to make some headway. The death of Mayer was shocking and I was quite upset because I felt like I wanted Mayer to continue. The point about Jack "learning to trust the institutions he's sacrificed so much for", was very good and I hope they will continue this theme on.
The ensuing fight between Quinn and Jack was also great and Quinn is a great character, who also died in this episode. The fact that Jack has met an equal is a really good storyline, and it's a testament to how fragmented this season is that that story only continued for a couple of episodes.
The villain of Jonas Hodges was fleshed out a bit more in this episode than even Dubaku or Juma was. He seems to have some morals and believe he is fighting a righteous battle, rather than the thugs that Juma and Dubaku are/were. He doesn't necessarily have the cool factor, but he makes you think.
Obviously the other big side-story in this episode was the interplay between Allison, Ethan and Olivia. Sprague Grayden was excellent as always, and Ethan was just boring and average. He's rather in the doghouse right now, but I still think there is some scope for Olivia to make some serious mistakes.
It looks like this story will also come to an end soon; the weapons are in place and it'll only be a few episodes before we see a new villain and a new plot. This fragmentation is not particularly believable and doesn't make for a gripping and flowing storyline; this season feels like a series of short films. Unfortunately there's not much they can do to pull it back now, but I think that'll always be how I'll remember this season.
Tuesday, 24 March 2009
NOTIFICATION: The Apprentice (UK) Season 5
Next season to start will be:
The Apprentice (UK)
Season 5
Initial run: 25/03/2009 - ?
Starring:
Sir Alan Sugar
Nick Hewer
Margaret Mountford
Ben Clarke
Howard Ebison
James McQuillan
Majid Nagra
Noorul Choudhury
Phillip Taylor
Rocky Andrews
Anita Shah
Debra Barr
Kate Walsh
Kimberly Davis
Lorraine Tighe
Mona Lewis
Paula Jones
Yasmina Siadatan
Pre-season buzz:
The Apprentice (UK)
Season 5
Initial run: 25/03/2009 - ?
Starring:
Sir Alan Sugar
Nick Hewer
Margaret Mountford
Ben Clarke
Howard Ebison
James McQuillan
Majid Nagra
Noorul Choudhury
Phillip Taylor
Rocky Andrews
Anita Shah
Debra Barr
Kate Walsh
Kimberly Davis
Lorraine Tighe
Mona Lewis
Paula Jones
Yasmina Siadatan
Pre-season buzz:
- Last year, videos were released of all the boys and all the girls audition tapes; this has not been done this year. However one small clip from episode one has been released, showing the girls team negotiating on price of cleaning some cars.
- Apparently, one male candidate dropped out before the first episode. This explains why there are 8 girls but only 7 boys.
- As with last year, the teams will not be allowed into the Apprentice House until after the first task is complete.
- It's hardly surprising that this season will start on Wednesday 25th March; season 3 started on Wednesday 28th March and season 4 on Wednesday 26th March. However the BBC kept very tight-lipped about this season until promotions began on 5th March 2009.
- From a personal point of view: season 4 was my least favourite so far, so I have high expectations that this will claw it back.
What I'm watching at the moment (version 2)
After finale day 5 my programme schedule is now:
1. Prison Break Season 2
2. 24 Season 7 (with broadcast)
3. Damages Season 2 (with broadcast)
4. The New Adventures Of Superman Season 2
5. Jericho Season 1
6. Dark Angel Season 2
7. The Apprentice (UK) Season 5 (with broadcast)
8. {Hold for Peep Show Season 6}
9. La Femme Nikita Season 1
10. {Hold for Futurama Season 5}
1. Prison Break Season 2
2. 24 Season 7 (with broadcast)
3. Damages Season 2 (with broadcast)
4. The New Adventures Of Superman Season 2
5. Jericho Season 1
6. Dark Angel Season 2
7. The Apprentice (UK) Season 5 (with broadcast)
8. {Hold for Peep Show Season 6}
9. La Femme Nikita Season 1
10. {Hold for Futurama Season 5}
[SOP] I Dream Of Jeannie Cusamano
TV Programme: Ultimate Force
Season: 1
Episode: 13
Date I watched this episode: 22/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 1 day
Well, my relationship with this show has been something of a love/hate relationship. First episode, I loved it, then I started to get fed up with it to the point where I didn't think I was going to bother continuing, then I started to really enjoy it, and then finally this season finale absolutely blew me away. What an episode, in terms of a climax, in terms of acting brilliance, in terms of the atmosphere and feeling.
The episode kicked off with a short sequence involving the murder of Jimmy. This was not really in-keeping with the rest of the episode, but it made a good start, and put a smile back on Tony's face. Which is a good thing because the depression seen in the last episode was not sustainable. The sequence itself was cool - Christopher was so relaxed, as if he was really going on a night out with Jimmy.
The "actual" start to the episode where Livia wanders up to the house, was brilliant too. This reminded me of some Smallville episodes, and in particular [SMV] "Covenant", where someone wanders up to a house completely out-of-character and this creates a shock which really grabs you. Or just in general in a season finale, they often start with something pretty unusual happening. I still don't know if Livia was putting it on or not, but her smile at the end of the episode was deliciously evil and amazingly directed.
I counted about 5 different story threads which met their climax or a significant development in this episode. The thing with Livia I've just mentioned is the first. Then there's the fire at Vesuvio's, the FBI inditements, Tony finding out Junior tried to kill him, and Father Phil's relationship with Carmella. I couldn't have wished for more drama and emotion.
Jennifer Melfi was FANTASTIC in this episode. The relationship between Tony and Jennifer entered a whole new level here, where she revealed what she really thought because Tony's "life is in danger", and he persuaded her to leave the country. The way she took to all this was so believable and I'll be interested to see where this is taken next season.
Carmella and Tony seem to be back to normal after their earlier problems. The sympathy that she gives him over his problems is quite heart-warming. Perhaps it is because she has had a chance to bury her demons with Father Phil, and now realises that Tony is her everything.
The idea of a storm brewing is quite cliche (not that it's a bad thing, as [TWW] "Two Cathedrals" my favourite episode of all time shows) but it was well-done here; the actual end to the episode was soft and reflective rather than a cliffhanger, which I think is very true to the style of this programme.
I think a couple of things were wrong about this episode. One of them was the fact that the FBI arrests happened so suddenly. It would have been nice if we'd have seen a build-up to these arrests taking place. Secondly, the thing with the fire at Vesuvio's was pretty much superfluous, as nothing really came of that, although it is a story that is not likely to resurface again now.
There was plenty of teasing for the future. Tony is now the defacto leader of the New Jersey Mob, much to Junior's disapproval. There will have to be trials, and many splits in loyalty in the early part of next season; a revolt is hinted at when the others find out that Tony was seeing a shrink. Also there will be some strong developments with Livia and Jennifer in the early part of the season. So I'm looking forward to that!!
This was a great finale and this programme has gone up in my estimations as a result. I will look forward to season 2, though that may be a long way off yet...
Season: 1
Episode: 13
Date I watched this episode: 22/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 1 day
Well, my relationship with this show has been something of a love/hate relationship. First episode, I loved it, then I started to get fed up with it to the point where I didn't think I was going to bother continuing, then I started to really enjoy it, and then finally this season finale absolutely blew me away. What an episode, in terms of a climax, in terms of acting brilliance, in terms of the atmosphere and feeling.
The episode kicked off with a short sequence involving the murder of Jimmy. This was not really in-keeping with the rest of the episode, but it made a good start, and put a smile back on Tony's face. Which is a good thing because the depression seen in the last episode was not sustainable. The sequence itself was cool - Christopher was so relaxed, as if he was really going on a night out with Jimmy.
The "actual" start to the episode where Livia wanders up to the house, was brilliant too. This reminded me of some Smallville episodes, and in particular [SMV] "Covenant", where someone wanders up to a house completely out-of-character and this creates a shock which really grabs you. Or just in general in a season finale, they often start with something pretty unusual happening. I still don't know if Livia was putting it on or not, but her smile at the end of the episode was deliciously evil and amazingly directed.
I counted about 5 different story threads which met their climax or a significant development in this episode. The thing with Livia I've just mentioned is the first. Then there's the fire at Vesuvio's, the FBI inditements, Tony finding out Junior tried to kill him, and Father Phil's relationship with Carmella. I couldn't have wished for more drama and emotion.
Jennifer Melfi was FANTASTIC in this episode. The relationship between Tony and Jennifer entered a whole new level here, where she revealed what she really thought because Tony's "life is in danger", and he persuaded her to leave the country. The way she took to all this was so believable and I'll be interested to see where this is taken next season.
Carmella and Tony seem to be back to normal after their earlier problems. The sympathy that she gives him over his problems is quite heart-warming. Perhaps it is because she has had a chance to bury her demons with Father Phil, and now realises that Tony is her everything.
The idea of a storm brewing is quite cliche (not that it's a bad thing, as [TWW] "Two Cathedrals" my favourite episode of all time shows) but it was well-done here; the actual end to the episode was soft and reflective rather than a cliffhanger, which I think is very true to the style of this programme.
I think a couple of things were wrong about this episode. One of them was the fact that the FBI arrests happened so suddenly. It would have been nice if we'd have seen a build-up to these arrests taking place. Secondly, the thing with the fire at Vesuvio's was pretty much superfluous, as nothing really came of that, although it is a story that is not likely to resurface again now.
There was plenty of teasing for the future. Tony is now the defacto leader of the New Jersey Mob, much to Junior's disapproval. There will have to be trials, and many splits in loyalty in the early part of next season; a revolt is hinted at when the others find out that Tony was seeing a shrink. Also there will be some strong developments with Livia and Jennifer in the early part of the season. So I'm looking forward to that!!
This was a great finale and this programme has gone up in my estimations as a result. I will look forward to season 2, though that may be a long way off yet...
[ULT] Weapon Of Choice
TV Programme: Ultimate Force
Season: 3
Episode: 4
Date I watched this episode: 22/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 9 months, 2 days.
It's been a while since I watched this, but not without good reason. First of all, I was waiting until I had some other finales to watch before watching the season 3 finale of this programme. Secondly, Ultimate Force is hardly my favourite series of all time; in fact I don't really know why I watch it, but I did like some of the earlier episodes.
It really did peter out towards the end, and this episode was not the dramatic season finale that seasons 1 and 2 have seen (though strangely the show was not cancelled, and was renewed for a fourth season). In fact, the ending to the episode, where Henno and co ran into the field, was pretty corny (no pun intended), not very believable, and rather an anticlimax to this story thread in the episode. The episode had a rubbish start too - the "news footage" section didn't add anything to the episode, was disorientating to watch, and also a bit cheesy.
In general they really are trying to fill extra time with the new time format. Seasons 1 and 2 had a 50-minute running length, whereas this season has extended that to 70 minutes, which is not necessarily a good thing. There were three main fighting sequences in this episode (woods at the beginning, the ambush of the home base, and the gasworks) but all of them dragged on for too long without much to keep the viewer interested. Especially in wide open spaces it is very hard to use the set to their advantage; and when they did have an opportunity for indoor fighting, they didn't use it to its full potential. The season 2 premiere "Communication" is a prime example of how they can do these sequences well if they want - by using sets (in that case a boat) to their advantage.
When they did take a break from the action it often seemed random and time-wasting. For example, the firing range at the glass bottles - what did that add? The puppet show was disturbing, not in-theme and completely pointless too. Character development was also weak; Sapiat and the Irishman were not a believable couple, and not enough depth was explored as to the reasons why they were fighting in the first place. They had obviously put some effort into the storyline and the other threads (though there were some loose ends like what the hell was that nun doing there), but all the other bad elements detracted from what could have been a good story.
I think I had higher expectations of this episode than I should have done, and in the end I was seriously underwhelmed by it.
Season: 3
Episode: 4
Date I watched this episode: 22/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 9 months, 2 days.
It's been a while since I watched this, but not without good reason. First of all, I was waiting until I had some other finales to watch before watching the season 3 finale of this programme. Secondly, Ultimate Force is hardly my favourite series of all time; in fact I don't really know why I watch it, but I did like some of the earlier episodes.
It really did peter out towards the end, and this episode was not the dramatic season finale that seasons 1 and 2 have seen (though strangely the show was not cancelled, and was renewed for a fourth season). In fact, the ending to the episode, where Henno and co ran into the field, was pretty corny (no pun intended), not very believable, and rather an anticlimax to this story thread in the episode. The episode had a rubbish start too - the "news footage" section didn't add anything to the episode, was disorientating to watch, and also a bit cheesy.
In general they really are trying to fill extra time with the new time format. Seasons 1 and 2 had a 50-minute running length, whereas this season has extended that to 70 minutes, which is not necessarily a good thing. There were three main fighting sequences in this episode (woods at the beginning, the ambush of the home base, and the gasworks) but all of them dragged on for too long without much to keep the viewer interested. Especially in wide open spaces it is very hard to use the set to their advantage; and when they did have an opportunity for indoor fighting, they didn't use it to its full potential. The season 2 premiere "Communication" is a prime example of how they can do these sequences well if they want - by using sets (in that case a boat) to their advantage.
When they did take a break from the action it often seemed random and time-wasting. For example, the firing range at the glass bottles - what did that add? The puppet show was disturbing, not in-theme and completely pointless too. Character development was also weak; Sapiat and the Irishman were not a believable couple, and not enough depth was explored as to the reasons why they were fighting in the first place. They had obviously put some effort into the storyline and the other threads (though there were some loose ends like what the hell was that nun doing there), but all the other bad elements detracted from what could have been a good story.
I think I had higher expectations of this episode than I should have done, and in the end I was seriously underwhelmed by it.
Sunday, 22 March 2009
NOTIFICATION: Finale Day 5
Finale Day 5 will be held on 22/03/2009. The episodes comprising this session will be:
Ultimate Force: "Weapon Of Choice"
The Sopranos: "I Dream of Jeannie Cusamano"
The replacement seasons will be:
[ULT] Ultimate Force -> {Hold for [AUK] The Apprentice (UK) Season 5 - due to start 25/03/2009}
[SOP] The Sopranos -> {Hold for [PSW] Peep Show Season 6 - due to start soon...}
Ultimate Force: "Weapon Of Choice"
The Sopranos: "I Dream of Jeannie Cusamano"
The replacement seasons will be:
[ULT] Ultimate Force -> {Hold for [AUK] The Apprentice (UK) Season 5 - due to start 25/03/2009}
[SOP] The Sopranos -> {Hold for [PSW] Peep Show Season 6 - due to start soon...}
[SOP] Isabella
TV Programme: The Sopranos
Season: 1
Episode: 12
Date I watched this episode: 21/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 2 days.
This episode, which focussed on some pretty deep psychology, was every bit as good as the pilot episode for closely weaving that psychology with reality. I was seriously impressed with the way in which the writers dealt with the current situation with the characters, and this programme has gone up in my estimations if only based on this one episode.
Much of the first half of the episode was showing the different sides to Tony's depression. It's great that they managed to show this in such full force and depth, as this is the kind of thing that would be treated in other programmes with a single montage lasting a couple of minutes. The Sopranos has a bit more creative license due to its reliance on psychology to make the story work.
It's a very complex relationship between Tony and Livia, and while she seemed genuinely upset, she was also her usual manipulative self. I think Tony realised here how much he needs her, and perhaps he needs to do things differently if only for his own sanity. This twist at the end, i.e. the non-existence of Isabella, is a device that's been done before but The Sopranos executed it very well. Livia and Junior also had a bit of a rollercoaster this episode, as they avoided the issue of Tony and only hinted at various things.
I'm not sure how Tony survived to be honest. Those two guys must just have been a really bad shot to begin with. Also I don't know what Christopher is up to with them. It might be genuine concern/paranoia, or maybe he has plans against the psychiatrist office...
The FBI have offered Tony immunity which should be very tempting and may well cause a rift between Tony and Carmella. Strangely, they have been thrust into a similar situation as Livia and Johnny were in all those years ago, the opportunity to start a new life, but circumstances must dictate otherwise.
This was a great episode. Next up is the season finale, which I'm sure you'll gather I've been progressing towards in the run-up to a finale day. So I have high hopes for that, and I'll definitely be writing about that very soon.
Season: 1
Episode: 12
Date I watched this episode: 21/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 2 days.
This episode, which focussed on some pretty deep psychology, was every bit as good as the pilot episode for closely weaving that psychology with reality. I was seriously impressed with the way in which the writers dealt with the current situation with the characters, and this programme has gone up in my estimations if only based on this one episode.
Much of the first half of the episode was showing the different sides to Tony's depression. It's great that they managed to show this in such full force and depth, as this is the kind of thing that would be treated in other programmes with a single montage lasting a couple of minutes. The Sopranos has a bit more creative license due to its reliance on psychology to make the story work.
It's a very complex relationship between Tony and Livia, and while she seemed genuinely upset, she was also her usual manipulative self. I think Tony realised here how much he needs her, and perhaps he needs to do things differently if only for his own sanity. This twist at the end, i.e. the non-existence of Isabella, is a device that's been done before but The Sopranos executed it very well. Livia and Junior also had a bit of a rollercoaster this episode, as they avoided the issue of Tony and only hinted at various things.
I'm not sure how Tony survived to be honest. Those two guys must just have been a really bad shot to begin with. Also I don't know what Christopher is up to with them. It might be genuine concern/paranoia, or maybe he has plans against the psychiatrist office...
The FBI have offered Tony immunity which should be very tempting and may well cause a rift between Tony and Carmella. Strangely, they have been thrust into a similar situation as Livia and Johnny were in all those years ago, the opportunity to start a new life, but circumstances must dictate otherwise.
This was a great episode. Next up is the season finale, which I'm sure you'll gather I've been progressing towards in the run-up to a finale day. So I have high hopes for that, and I'll definitely be writing about that very soon.
[SOP] Nobody Knows Anything
TV Programme: The Sopranos
Season: 1
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 19/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 3 days.
After the shockingly bad last episode (which, after the dust settles, may well be one of the worst episodes of all time, along with [FAR] “Taking The Stone”, [SMV] “Krypto” etc) it was good to see a return to form with this one. A number of the storylines which are presumably progressing to the season finale were taken further here. In particular the revolt of Tony Soprano was brought much more to the surface. Surely Tony was a bit naïve thinking he could hold secret meetings at Livia Soprano’s house without Junior finding out though.
The main storyline of this episode was the mole within Soprano’s crew. I’m still not sure whether this is Jimmy; they seem to only have circumstantial evidence that this is the case. Still quite a lot of things don’t make sense about the gangster known as “Pussy”; how did he really escape the heroin bust? How did he really get out of jail so quick? However it’s unlikely that these questions will be answered; the context of the wild goose chase is often glossed over as it has been previously in 24 and Alias, etc.
The idea of the back problems was a theme through this episode too. Personally I’ve been having back problems recently and so it was interesting to learn that they can be caused by mental strain, under a great responsibility or secret. This tied in the psychiatrist with the central story in a very natural way.
There was a build up in the tensions between Tony and his mother here. Carmella showed a surprising amount of bravery (and perhaps recklessness) by facing up to Livia. She is right in that Livia is demonstrating “textbook manipulation”, but how far is she willing to go? Tony said that when she pointed that fork at him, she wouldn’t have done anything, but is she now prepared to go down a route that will lead in Tony’s assassination by Junior?
Carmella also hinted about Livia’s relationship with Junior. Despite her protests, she brought Junior’s name up several times. The relationship between Livia and Junior is somewhat undefined, and this is not necessarily a bad thing. Tony is however clearly jealous of the fact that Livia has more time for Junior than him.
The “dirty cop” Vin has been somewhat of a background character recently. However he was obviously a key character here, leading to his suicide and Tony’s subsequent guilt for treating him so bad (the reasons why he did this have not really been made clear). This was probably the weakest story of the episode, but still good to have in there.
Now we are nearing the end of this first season, it is interesting to try to predict what storylines will meet their climax in the final episode and which will continue into future seasons. Will Junior and Tony have it out? Will Livia die? Will Meadow and/or Anthony find out the truth? Will the FBI start to make some serious arrests? Will the mole be dealt with? So many stories coming to a head, the season finale “I Dream Of Jeannie Cusamano” will likely be an amazing climax to this season.
Season: 1
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 19/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 3 days.
After the shockingly bad last episode (which, after the dust settles, may well be one of the worst episodes of all time, along with [FAR] “Taking The Stone”, [SMV] “Krypto” etc) it was good to see a return to form with this one. A number of the storylines which are presumably progressing to the season finale were taken further here. In particular the revolt of Tony Soprano was brought much more to the surface. Surely Tony was a bit naïve thinking he could hold secret meetings at Livia Soprano’s house without Junior finding out though.
The main storyline of this episode was the mole within Soprano’s crew. I’m still not sure whether this is Jimmy; they seem to only have circumstantial evidence that this is the case. Still quite a lot of things don’t make sense about the gangster known as “Pussy”; how did he really escape the heroin bust? How did he really get out of jail so quick? However it’s unlikely that these questions will be answered; the context of the wild goose chase is often glossed over as it has been previously in 24 and Alias, etc.
The idea of the back problems was a theme through this episode too. Personally I’ve been having back problems recently and so it was interesting to learn that they can be caused by mental strain, under a great responsibility or secret. This tied in the psychiatrist with the central story in a very natural way.
There was a build up in the tensions between Tony and his mother here. Carmella showed a surprising amount of bravery (and perhaps recklessness) by facing up to Livia. She is right in that Livia is demonstrating “textbook manipulation”, but how far is she willing to go? Tony said that when she pointed that fork at him, she wouldn’t have done anything, but is she now prepared to go down a route that will lead in Tony’s assassination by Junior?
Carmella also hinted about Livia’s relationship with Junior. Despite her protests, she brought Junior’s name up several times. The relationship between Livia and Junior is somewhat undefined, and this is not necessarily a bad thing. Tony is however clearly jealous of the fact that Livia has more time for Junior than him.
The “dirty cop” Vin has been somewhat of a background character recently. However he was obviously a key character here, leading to his suicide and Tony’s subsequent guilt for treating him so bad (the reasons why he did this have not really been made clear). This was probably the weakest story of the episode, but still good to have in there.
Now we are nearing the end of this first season, it is interesting to try to predict what storylines will meet their climax in the final episode and which will continue into future seasons. Will Junior and Tony have it out? Will Livia die? Will Meadow and/or Anthony find out the truth? Will the FBI start to make some serious arrests? Will the mole be dealt with? So many stories coming to a head, the season finale “I Dream Of Jeannie Cusamano” will likely be an amazing climax to this season.
[SOP] A Hit Is A Hit
TV Programme: The Sopranos
Season: 1
Episode: 10
Date I watched this episode: 16/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 2 days.
I was quite disappointed with this episode, and it may well be the worst episode of the season so far. The storyline was just bad, not in keeping with the coolness I have come to expect, too predictable, corny, and altogether felt like a B-Movie. I mean come on, calling a character “Massive-G”, how un-Sopranos-like is that?
This episode featured Christopher quite heavily, which was nice to see, but didn’t really develop his character very much. It also featured Adriana, Christopher’s girlfriend played by Drea De Matteo, in her biggest series role to date. Despite the fact that the only programme I’ve ever seen Drea in to date is Joey, quite a shockingly poor programme, I still think from that that she is quite a good actress. Here she just didn’t have a chance to excel because she was given some really bad, cringe worthy lines. I know her character is not meant to be very bright, but she was just incredibly annoying to the point of contributing to ruining the episode.
Jennifer was also featured a little bit in a side story. Here I thought she was an amazing actress as usual, but again it was quite a bad scene. The lady who was talking about “whackin’” was also a bit annoying. I know these are supposed to be “working class” people, but the environment didn’t fit with the style of the show. The only thing I think this story did add was to show how intrigued Jennifer genuinely is with Tony’s world, which goes some way to answering the question of why she took Tony on in the first place.
I hope that this is the last we’ve seen of the story, but it was hinted during this episode that it might continue. The last we see of Massive-G, he says “see you in court”, and the storyline was not really wrapped up. I certainly hope that in hindsight, the writers realise what a painfully bad episode this worked out to be.
Season: 1
Episode: 10
Date I watched this episode: 16/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 2 days.
I was quite disappointed with this episode, and it may well be the worst episode of the season so far. The storyline was just bad, not in keeping with the coolness I have come to expect, too predictable, corny, and altogether felt like a B-Movie. I mean come on, calling a character “Massive-G”, how un-Sopranos-like is that?
This episode featured Christopher quite heavily, which was nice to see, but didn’t really develop his character very much. It also featured Adriana, Christopher’s girlfriend played by Drea De Matteo, in her biggest series role to date. Despite the fact that the only programme I’ve ever seen Drea in to date is Joey, quite a shockingly poor programme, I still think from that that she is quite a good actress. Here she just didn’t have a chance to excel because she was given some really bad, cringe worthy lines. I know her character is not meant to be very bright, but she was just incredibly annoying to the point of contributing to ruining the episode.
Jennifer was also featured a little bit in a side story. Here I thought she was an amazing actress as usual, but again it was quite a bad scene. The lady who was talking about “whackin’” was also a bit annoying. I know these are supposed to be “working class” people, but the environment didn’t fit with the style of the show. The only thing I think this story did add was to show how intrigued Jennifer genuinely is with Tony’s world, which goes some way to answering the question of why she took Tony on in the first place.
I hope that this is the last we’ve seen of the story, but it was hinted during this episode that it might continue. The last we see of Massive-G, he says “see you in court”, and the storyline was not really wrapped up. I certainly hope that in hindsight, the writers realise what a painfully bad episode this worked out to be.
[SOP] Boca
TV Programme: The Sopranos
Season: 1
Episode: 9
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: Less than 1 day.
The story of this episode, once again, did not disappoint in its own right, whilst also developing the characters and the season-wide arc. The major twist of Hauser’s true nature was unexpected. The writers/directors had done well in making him out to be a bit of a “prude” (in the scene in the strip club) and also making the viewers feel sorry for him, feeling like he was the victim of Mafia extortion.
Then the revelation of the truth was shocking and the resulting moral dilemma was both believable and interesting. Tony Soprano actually has a conscience, and here he showed it in full force. I think this is necessary though in order to make him a believable and likable main character.
The minor story in this episode was the interplay between Tony and Junior: Tony having found out his own little secret about Junior, while Junior is aggravated to spread rumours about the psychiatrist even more. The “pie in the face” scene with Junior and Bobbi was just beautiful, quite a quirky scene which was very well directed and scored.
Some other recurring threads appeared; one of which was the whole “Italian values” thing which had been mentioned previously with Jennifer and her ex-husband, and now it is with Tony and the Italian restaurant (the guy with the cap). Another theme was the “should we tell Meadow everything” story; Tony was given added pressure on that as he doesn’t want Meadow to get as frustrated as Ali did. Jennifer and Christopher didn’t appear much in this episode though.
Once again this was a good, fairly standalone story, and made for an enjoyable episode, while not being quite as dramatic as some of the earlier ones.
Season: 1
Episode: 9
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: Less than 1 day.
The story of this episode, once again, did not disappoint in its own right, whilst also developing the characters and the season-wide arc. The major twist of Hauser’s true nature was unexpected. The writers/directors had done well in making him out to be a bit of a “prude” (in the scene in the strip club) and also making the viewers feel sorry for him, feeling like he was the victim of Mafia extortion.
Then the revelation of the truth was shocking and the resulting moral dilemma was both believable and interesting. Tony Soprano actually has a conscience, and here he showed it in full force. I think this is necessary though in order to make him a believable and likable main character.
The minor story in this episode was the interplay between Tony and Junior: Tony having found out his own little secret about Junior, while Junior is aggravated to spread rumours about the psychiatrist even more. The “pie in the face” scene with Junior and Bobbi was just beautiful, quite a quirky scene which was very well directed and scored.
Some other recurring threads appeared; one of which was the whole “Italian values” thing which had been mentioned previously with Jennifer and her ex-husband, and now it is with Tony and the Italian restaurant (the guy with the cap). Another theme was the “should we tell Meadow everything” story; Tony was given added pressure on that as he doesn’t want Meadow to get as frustrated as Ali did. Jennifer and Christopher didn’t appear much in this episode though.
Once again this was a good, fairly standalone story, and made for an enjoyable episode, while not being quite as dramatic as some of the earlier ones.
[PRB] Rendezvous
TV Programme: Prison Break
Season: 2
Episode: 10
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 7 days.
Another amazing episode for the battle of Scofield and Mahone. If only for that thing with the cage, this was a good episode. Michael got out of a seemingly impossible situation with an amazing stunt, and the expression on Mahone's face was priceless. Mahone is slipping - he shouldn't have let Sara get away. In particular he should have called ahead to the hotel - he would have discovered that Sara was staying there well in advance and wouldn't have had to waste his time.
Paul Kellerman is at his wits end. He was given another chance by Mr. Kim (who wanted to get Mahone to kill Burrows, but decided to give the task to Paul) and has failed in the eyes of Kim. Therefore he's a desperate man. Who knows what he'll do to Sara Tancredi? Hopefully he can find something within himself to save Sara, and start off on a path to redemption.
Michael and Sara's reunion certainly was bittersweet. She is correct in saying that Michael's "plan to make all of this right" is something of an anticlimax, and I wonder if the writers agree with this? I'm sure it isn't over between them, and perhaps Michael will come to her rescue right about now.
I'm glad that Brad Bellick didn't get the money. He was completely sick in this episode with his methods, making me feel sick to be honest. The whole "walking on sunshine" thing was messed up too. However the fact that the other guard has got all the money means that we are probably going to see more of him, and this isn't a good thing as he's not a great actor.
Lincoln and LJ didn't stay in custody long!! Lincoln's Dad's organisation is cool and I'm really excited about seeing them in action. I still think there is more to them than meets the eye too though... In fact there's a lot of things I'm looking forward to as this thing progresses. So all in all this was a pretty great episode.
Season: 2
Episode: 10
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 7 days.
Another amazing episode for the battle of Scofield and Mahone. If only for that thing with the cage, this was a good episode. Michael got out of a seemingly impossible situation with an amazing stunt, and the expression on Mahone's face was priceless. Mahone is slipping - he shouldn't have let Sara get away. In particular he should have called ahead to the hotel - he would have discovered that Sara was staying there well in advance and wouldn't have had to waste his time.
Paul Kellerman is at his wits end. He was given another chance by Mr. Kim (who wanted to get Mahone to kill Burrows, but decided to give the task to Paul) and has failed in the eyes of Kim. Therefore he's a desperate man. Who knows what he'll do to Sara Tancredi? Hopefully he can find something within himself to save Sara, and start off on a path to redemption.
Michael and Sara's reunion certainly was bittersweet. She is correct in saying that Michael's "plan to make all of this right" is something of an anticlimax, and I wonder if the writers agree with this? I'm sure it isn't over between them, and perhaps Michael will come to her rescue right about now.
I'm glad that Brad Bellick didn't get the money. He was completely sick in this episode with his methods, making me feel sick to be honest. The whole "walking on sunshine" thing was messed up too. However the fact that the other guard has got all the money means that we are probably going to see more of him, and this isn't a good thing as he's not a great actor.
Lincoln and LJ didn't stay in custody long!! Lincoln's Dad's organisation is cool and I'm really excited about seeing them in action. I still think there is more to them than meets the eye too though... In fact there's a lot of things I'm looking forward to as this thing progresses. So all in all this was a pretty great episode.
[DMG] Uh Oh. Out Come The Skeletons.
TV Programme: Damages
Season: 2
Episode: 10
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 7 days.
So...everyone is working for Dave Pell? This is a bit of a twist. I'm still not really sure who Dave Pell is. He seems to have an insane amount of power; I'm also still not quite sure what he means when he says "is it?" in response to Kendrick's "this is my company we're talking about." I also don't know what his endgame is in employing FBI agents separately and paying them for basically no reason. But this was a good twist, though it was revealed a bit too slowly this episode; you could hear that "Pam" was a man right from the start of the episode.
Meanwhile Rick Messer is being equally evil and manipulative. I mean, Wes has appeared to be trying to organise to kill Ellen (asking her for a quiet weekend away...) but in light of what he knows now, it is completely unreasonable to still have to do it. Wes must have done something really bad to be manipulated like this.
Claire Maddox and Patty faced off to good effect. I would like to see more of these two pitted against each other. The other Maddox storylines in this episode though - tensions with Kendrick, chats with Purcell (who has demonstrated that he is completely superfluous to this entire season), and especially the thing with her dad - were weak.
What is going on with Michael's girlfriend? He seems to be getting it on with that tatooed girl right in front of the lady who is supposedly his "actual" girlfriend. Patty detects that she is being manipulated but Michael is just too good at it. Her anger comes through spectacularly when she threatens to rip the lady's face off. There is more going on than meets the eye though and I'm sure this story will continue in future episodes.
Predictably the "I Lied, Too" scene was playing over and over in the episode with very little added until the very end. The question now is how Patty managed to escape? Did she kill Ellen? Or is this part of some wider plot that has yet to be revealed... Other strange things from this episode are: who is watching Claire and Danny on the monitor? And what was going on between Ellen and that guy in the bar - they looked like they were getting into each other and then he disappeared...?
Next episode is called "London. Of Course." Let's predict that this one is said by Phil Hewes when talking about the energy secretary position to Dave Pell. This episode was just pretty average but hopefully we will get some actual answers next time around.
Season: 2
Episode: 10
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 7 days.
So...everyone is working for Dave Pell? This is a bit of a twist. I'm still not really sure who Dave Pell is. He seems to have an insane amount of power; I'm also still not quite sure what he means when he says "is it?" in response to Kendrick's "this is my company we're talking about." I also don't know what his endgame is in employing FBI agents separately and paying them for basically no reason. But this was a good twist, though it was revealed a bit too slowly this episode; you could hear that "Pam" was a man right from the start of the episode.
Meanwhile Rick Messer is being equally evil and manipulative. I mean, Wes has appeared to be trying to organise to kill Ellen (asking her for a quiet weekend away...) but in light of what he knows now, it is completely unreasonable to still have to do it. Wes must have done something really bad to be manipulated like this.
Claire Maddox and Patty faced off to good effect. I would like to see more of these two pitted against each other. The other Maddox storylines in this episode though - tensions with Kendrick, chats with Purcell (who has demonstrated that he is completely superfluous to this entire season), and especially the thing with her dad - were weak.
What is going on with Michael's girlfriend? He seems to be getting it on with that tatooed girl right in front of the lady who is supposedly his "actual" girlfriend. Patty detects that she is being manipulated but Michael is just too good at it. Her anger comes through spectacularly when she threatens to rip the lady's face off. There is more going on than meets the eye though and I'm sure this story will continue in future episodes.
Predictably the "I Lied, Too" scene was playing over and over in the episode with very little added until the very end. The question now is how Patty managed to escape? Did she kill Ellen? Or is this part of some wider plot that has yet to be revealed... Other strange things from this episode are: who is watching Claire and Danny on the monitor? And what was going on between Ellen and that guy in the bar - they looked like they were getting into each other and then he disappeared...?
Next episode is called "London. Of Course." Let's predict that this one is said by Phil Hewes when talking about the energy secretary position to Dave Pell. This episode was just pretty average but hopefully we will get some actual answers next time around.
[24H] Day 7: 8:00pm - 9:00pm
TV Programme: 24
Season: 7
Episode: 13
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 9 days.
A lot happened in this episode from start to finish, as the "Juma" storyline was wrapped up (how predictable) and the Hodges storyline got underway. This kind of split the episode into two parts; and the action-packed part was first, leaving us with the rather more boring and repetitive part taking up most of the episode.
I don't think the ending was an anticlimax - and Bill's death was a major part of that. Buchanan is one of my favourite characters on the show and I was very sad to see him go. But it was necessary in order to create an ending which didn't belittle what had just happened. There were lingering scenes in the aftermath later on in the episode too - and in particular I think Sprague's acting is amazing here; she is just as good as she is in Jericho.
I don't think it's believable that they'd know that Hodges was such an accomplice from just fragments of Juma's conversation with him; they probably had loads of people on the outside and it was impossible for them to know that Hodges was so key. But this was kind of glossed over in the episode and won't be mentioned again. Hodges' endgame is still not clear even to the viewers; his comment of "let's hope we never have to find out" was interesting; presumably he is going to be making some demands.
Quinn (who I didn't recognise from Redemption, but apparently he was in it too) was an amazing character in this episode. It's good to see Jack being outwitted, and I hope they meet again at some point. He's also a character who has some moral standards too, as he decided which of the two elderly men to kill based on their family histories (though he spent way too long on this when time was running out for them). He's also a mercenary though - so kind of like Tony; who incidentally we haven't seen for a while, this is a shame.
Larry Moss's objections to Bauer's work are getting boring, and he was totally unreasonable with Renee in this episode. Surely he can see that he is letting his emotions get in the way... he is probably the most two-dimensional of the characters, unfortunately. I'm not sure whether now the White House threat is over, the VP will be back or not. Larry did order an operation without his authorisation, so he might get called up on that. The VP was getting very repetitive anyway, even using the same words ("I cannot authorise any action which may result in the President's death..." etc etc).
Now Jack is on the run from the police and things are going to get very ugly, especially if Larry thinks that he really killed Burnett. So we have some good setup, although it still feels like it's all been done before.
Season: 7
Episode: 13
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 9 days.
A lot happened in this episode from start to finish, as the "Juma" storyline was wrapped up (how predictable) and the Hodges storyline got underway. This kind of split the episode into two parts; and the action-packed part was first, leaving us with the rather more boring and repetitive part taking up most of the episode.
I don't think the ending was an anticlimax - and Bill's death was a major part of that. Buchanan is one of my favourite characters on the show and I was very sad to see him go. But it was necessary in order to create an ending which didn't belittle what had just happened. There were lingering scenes in the aftermath later on in the episode too - and in particular I think Sprague's acting is amazing here; she is just as good as she is in Jericho.
I don't think it's believable that they'd know that Hodges was such an accomplice from just fragments of Juma's conversation with him; they probably had loads of people on the outside and it was impossible for them to know that Hodges was so key. But this was kind of glossed over in the episode and won't be mentioned again. Hodges' endgame is still not clear even to the viewers; his comment of "let's hope we never have to find out" was interesting; presumably he is going to be making some demands.
Quinn (who I didn't recognise from Redemption, but apparently he was in it too) was an amazing character in this episode. It's good to see Jack being outwitted, and I hope they meet again at some point. He's also a character who has some moral standards too, as he decided which of the two elderly men to kill based on their family histories (though he spent way too long on this when time was running out for them). He's also a mercenary though - so kind of like Tony; who incidentally we haven't seen for a while, this is a shame.
Larry Moss's objections to Bauer's work are getting boring, and he was totally unreasonable with Renee in this episode. Surely he can see that he is letting his emotions get in the way... he is probably the most two-dimensional of the characters, unfortunately. I'm not sure whether now the White House threat is over, the VP will be back or not. Larry did order an operation without his authorisation, so he might get called up on that. The VP was getting very repetitive anyway, even using the same words ("I cannot authorise any action which may result in the President's death..." etc etc).
Now Jack is on the run from the police and things are going to get very ugly, especially if Larry thinks that he really killed Burnett. So we have some good setup, although it still feels like it's all been done before.
Saturday, 14 March 2009
[SOP] The Legend Of Tennessee Moltisanti
TV Programme: The Sopranos
Season: 1
Episode: 8
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 7 days.
This episode dealt mainly with the character I have expressed concerns about before - Christopher Moltisanti. I see him in the background sometimes and am a bit confused as to what part he plays in all of this. However, the writers effectively acknowledged this by saying that he doesn't have an "arc". This is the truth: pretty much every character on the show has an arc except him, and they managed to really turn this around this episode in a really bold move which paid off.
Acknowledging that a character has no place is quite a risky play and something that I haven't seen done before. But it really worked here, and Christopher is now a character that I want to see develop in the future. His "arc" has been clearly established as someone who's having a mid-life crisis, not sure if he wants to do this anymore.
Obviously the other major thing in this episode was the FBI, an element introduced in "Pax Soprana" and not even mentioned during "Down Neck". Things kicked off pretty quickly, and the "spring cleaning" operations were well planned. It was a good way to start a story which I'm sure will continue for a while.
It was also interesting to see the effect that this has on Jennifer Melfi, and her relationship with Tony. I still can't quite work her out. She knows how dangerous a position she is in and yet still perseveres against the advise of all her family and friends. Perhaps she is just trying to defy her ex-husband, but I think it is a bit more complicated than that.
There are also hints at future stories here. Still with the storyline of telling Meadow the truth - she is making sarcastic comments in this episode. Also Junior finds out that Tony is seeing a psychiatrist; this storyline can only end badly.
I enjoyed this episode again; I liked the story devices and the setup, it didn't feel disjointed, and I would welcome more episodes like this.
Season: 1
Episode: 8
Date I watched this episode: 14/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 7 days.
This episode dealt mainly with the character I have expressed concerns about before - Christopher Moltisanti. I see him in the background sometimes and am a bit confused as to what part he plays in all of this. However, the writers effectively acknowledged this by saying that he doesn't have an "arc". This is the truth: pretty much every character on the show has an arc except him, and they managed to really turn this around this episode in a really bold move which paid off.
Acknowledging that a character has no place is quite a risky play and something that I haven't seen done before. But it really worked here, and Christopher is now a character that I want to see develop in the future. His "arc" has been clearly established as someone who's having a mid-life crisis, not sure if he wants to do this anymore.
Obviously the other major thing in this episode was the FBI, an element introduced in "Pax Soprana" and not even mentioned during "Down Neck". Things kicked off pretty quickly, and the "spring cleaning" operations were well planned. It was a good way to start a story which I'm sure will continue for a while.
It was also interesting to see the effect that this has on Jennifer Melfi, and her relationship with Tony. I still can't quite work her out. She knows how dangerous a position she is in and yet still perseveres against the advise of all her family and friends. Perhaps she is just trying to defy her ex-husband, but I think it is a bit more complicated than that.
There are also hints at future stories here. Still with the storyline of telling Meadow the truth - she is making sarcastic comments in this episode. Also Junior finds out that Tony is seeing a psychiatrist; this storyline can only end badly.
I enjoyed this episode again; I liked the story devices and the setup, it didn't feel disjointed, and I would welcome more episodes like this.
[PRB] Unearthed
TV Programme: Prison Break
Season: 2
Episode: 9
Date I watched this episode: 07/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 11 days.
This episode was a bit variable. It focussed on the characters separately as they try to accomplish their separate goals: C-Note, T-Bag, Lincoln and Michael got almost equal screentime here.
T-Bag's story was not particularly exciting. Once again the two-dimensional, thuggish character of Bellick was pitted against the complex T-Bag, and this restricted the complexities that could occur within this storyline. I hope that T-Bag just destroys Bellick now, as his relevance in the series is pretty much ended.
Lincoln and LJ did some bonding in this episode, but this almost felt like a time-filler. Obviously it ended with Lincoln getting caught though, so the character development will be important for the episodes to come.
The C-Note storyline was good. This episode had a happy ending (though it won't necessarily stay that way) and the extraction was well planned and executed. From a filming perspective, it involved action across a wide range of sets and locations. In particular C-Note's wife's acting here was very commendable.
Finally there is the Michael/Mahone storyline (the best of the episode), involving Michael's ingenious solving of a mystery that has eluded the FBI for years. The battle of the intellects is seen here once again and these two characters play off each other very well. I liked the re-use of the phrase "out of your control" and am wondering if we will ever find out what Michael was trying to blow up with those nitroglycerin samples...
This episode was a bit disjointed but overall I'm glad I watched it. Since the next one is called "Rendez-Vous", I imagine we will see more of the Michael/Sara thing coming to a head, as well as finding out what happens with Lincoln.
Season: 2
Episode: 9
Date I watched this episode: 07/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 11 days.
This episode was a bit variable. It focussed on the characters separately as they try to accomplish their separate goals: C-Note, T-Bag, Lincoln and Michael got almost equal screentime here.
T-Bag's story was not particularly exciting. Once again the two-dimensional, thuggish character of Bellick was pitted against the complex T-Bag, and this restricted the complexities that could occur within this storyline. I hope that T-Bag just destroys Bellick now, as his relevance in the series is pretty much ended.
Lincoln and LJ did some bonding in this episode, but this almost felt like a time-filler. Obviously it ended with Lincoln getting caught though, so the character development will be important for the episodes to come.
The C-Note storyline was good. This episode had a happy ending (though it won't necessarily stay that way) and the extraction was well planned and executed. From a filming perspective, it involved action across a wide range of sets and locations. In particular C-Note's wife's acting here was very commendable.
Finally there is the Michael/Mahone storyline (the best of the episode), involving Michael's ingenious solving of a mystery that has eluded the FBI for years. The battle of the intellects is seen here once again and these two characters play off each other very well. I liked the re-use of the phrase "out of your control" and am wondering if we will ever find out what Michael was trying to blow up with those nitroglycerin samples...
This episode was a bit disjointed but overall I'm glad I watched it. Since the next one is called "Rendez-Vous", I imagine we will see more of the Michael/Sara thing coming to a head, as well as finding out what happens with Lincoln.
[SOP] Down Neck
TV Programme: The Sopranos
Season: 1
Episode: 7
Date I watched this episode: 07/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 14 days.
Since I resumed watching this programme I have got into it more. This was likely after reading some websites which explained what the hell was going on in the early episodes of the series, and I am starting to appreciate now the complexities of the story and situation.
I really liked this episode. It covered pretty much a single story from start to finish (excepting that scene with Tony and Christopher on the construction site, which had no relevance to anything) but which revealed a lot about the characters and their pasts. The way that Tony was looking at his own life and past through the eyes of his son was genius and very well-executed.
If anything this episode was more of a followup to the events of "College" than those of "Pax Soprana". The comparisons between the maturity of Meadow and Anthony were throughout this episode, despite the fact that the former only appeared in one scene. In terms of the season-wide arc, we are progressing towards a point where both Meadow and Anthony are going to find out the full truth. Their reaction to this will have quite an impact on the story, especially as Tony and Anthony are bonding more than anything in this episode, especially towards the end.
The flashbacks to this episode were pivotal to its execution. You really could believe that this was the young Tony Soprano. And the pace at which the story was revealed was set just right, so you could feel the full range of emotions that the young Soprano had gone through at the time, how it had shaped him and his decisions at the present time. It remains to be seen if Tony is doomed to repeat history or if there will be a suitable exit for the Soprano family.
This episode also shone a different light on Livia. Obviously we knew that Livia had grown up in the mafia lifestyle, but her ruthlessness was really highlighted here, along with her complicity in Tony's current situation. She is in general my least favourite character in the series, but gained a great deal of depth here.
There was some subtle development of the relationship between Tony and Jennifer too. Tony tells Jennifer about his Russian girlfriend which I was very surprised about. They are starting to talk more generally and frankly about the Mafia (rather than skirting around the issue or Tony making up a story), allowing Jennifer to provide more pertinent and influential advice.
I did think the scene at the table was a bit weird. I think this was the writer/director intention, but it didn't come off very well. Everyone was talking at cross-purposes and although it made the viewer sit up and concentrate, this was not the best time in the episode to try to promote that feeling.
Overall though this was a good episode and I am impressed with the direction the story and characters are developing. I was slightly disappointed not to see the hinted FBI story in this episode but I will be interested to see this in a future episode.
Season: 1
Episode: 7
Date I watched this episode: 07/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 14 days.
Since I resumed watching this programme I have got into it more. This was likely after reading some websites which explained what the hell was going on in the early episodes of the series, and I am starting to appreciate now the complexities of the story and situation.
I really liked this episode. It covered pretty much a single story from start to finish (excepting that scene with Tony and Christopher on the construction site, which had no relevance to anything) but which revealed a lot about the characters and their pasts. The way that Tony was looking at his own life and past through the eyes of his son was genius and very well-executed.
If anything this episode was more of a followup to the events of "College" than those of "Pax Soprana". The comparisons between the maturity of Meadow and Anthony were throughout this episode, despite the fact that the former only appeared in one scene. In terms of the season-wide arc, we are progressing towards a point where both Meadow and Anthony are going to find out the full truth. Their reaction to this will have quite an impact on the story, especially as Tony and Anthony are bonding more than anything in this episode, especially towards the end.
The flashbacks to this episode were pivotal to its execution. You really could believe that this was the young Tony Soprano. And the pace at which the story was revealed was set just right, so you could feel the full range of emotions that the young Soprano had gone through at the time, how it had shaped him and his decisions at the present time. It remains to be seen if Tony is doomed to repeat history or if there will be a suitable exit for the Soprano family.
This episode also shone a different light on Livia. Obviously we knew that Livia had grown up in the mafia lifestyle, but her ruthlessness was really highlighted here, along with her complicity in Tony's current situation. She is in general my least favourite character in the series, but gained a great deal of depth here.
There was some subtle development of the relationship between Tony and Jennifer too. Tony tells Jennifer about his Russian girlfriend which I was very surprised about. They are starting to talk more generally and frankly about the Mafia (rather than skirting around the issue or Tony making up a story), allowing Jennifer to provide more pertinent and influential advice.
I did think the scene at the table was a bit weird. I think this was the writer/director intention, but it didn't come off very well. Everyone was talking at cross-purposes and although it made the viewer sit up and concentrate, this was not the best time in the episode to try to promote that feeling.
Overall though this was a good episode and I am impressed with the direction the story and characters are developing. I was slightly disappointed not to see the hinted FBI story in this episode but I will be interested to see this in a future episode.
Monday, 9 March 2009
HALF-WAY POINT: 24 Season 7
Well we are half-way through season 7 of 24, and time for a bit of a recap of what has happened so far.
Storylines
1. Juma regime. This storyline is shaping up quite well with the invasion of the White House, a completely unexpected move. Ike Dubaku was a great villain earlier this season.
2. War on Sangala. Linked to the above, this storyline has calmed down recently. The President had to make some tough calls, and it was good to establish her character.
3. The mole within the FBI. This has now been discovered as Sean, but I can't believe that that's it for Sean within this season.
4. Investigations into Roger's death. Certainly the reintroduction of Hodges, who seemed to sanction Roger's death, may well bring this storyline back.
5. The trial of Jack Bauer. The fact that Jack is now effectively locked up with the Senator will make for some interesting turns.
6. The Bauer-Walker-Moss love triangle. I think this storyline can get a bit ridiculous; Renee has only known Jack for 12 hours and already she seems to be in love with him.
Locations
1. The White House. The set is well constructed and has a bit more style than the one used on The West Wing; more time is spent there too. However due to continuity, they weren't able to customise this one too much.
2. FBI Washington Field Office. I've moaned about this set before. It's a bit of a stupid set as it is so closed and appears incredibly small, so we can't get the big action sequences.
3. "Counter Terrorist Unit". This set has been under-used; I imagined a big operations panel with plasma screens on the wall and so on. The crew have only visited it twice; they didn't stay rogue for long.
4. Ritter Building. This was Dubaku's base during the first part of the season. Since it was dark, it was hard to tell what was going on, which was almost a bit of a cheat for the set designers.
5. US Capitol. The first Jack Bauer scene was set here; another faithful representation and it would be nice to see again.
People
Already appeared
1. Jack Bauer. Jack's ruthlessness has now become commonplace, and he doesn't seem quite so affected by his time in China. In fact his experiences in India and Sangala haven't changed him too much either, he is just the same old person. I don't see much character development going on with Jack this season, much as Renee tries to force it!
2. Renee Walker. It seems more and more that Renee is there this season to be Jack's latest love interest. She is a good agent who works well with Jack though and I like seeing her in action sequences. Her character seems very different to early on in the season; then, she was a cool, calm person who was phased by nothing; now, she is a bit scared and not sure where she stands. I suppose Jack has that effect on people.
3. Larry Moss. Larry is a strong leader, if a bit naive. His introduction to this season is similar to characters like Ryan Chappelle, only he seems good-hearted. The involvement in the Jack-Renee love triangle also adds some extra depth here.
4. Bill Buchanan. Bill was one of my favourite character, especially in season 6, but here he seems too old and a bit past it. His refusal to co-operate with Jack's methods is borne out of a desire to do the right thing, which surely is a bit naive on a day like this. Buchanan still has potential though.
5. Janis Gold. As I've said before, I love the actress anyway from her appearance in The West Wing. Janis is sometimes quirky, sometimes funny, sometimes very straight-up and business-like; she has a lot of different sides and is a well-constructed character. Not to mention that she is hot!
6. Tony Almeida. Tony has had a similar assistance role this season to what he did in season 4. Seeing him back on operations is good; he hasn't featured recently though. The writers could do more with the "shock Tony returns" storyline moving into the second half of the season.
7. Sean Hillinger. Sean was a boring character to start with but the revelation that he is the mole is interesting. As previously stated, I hope he returns for a redemption storyline.
8. Allison Taylor. Taylor is a very morally upright individual, who has a different approach and aura than any other President we've seen on this show. I wouldn't say she is as good as Palmer or Logan, but she does take things in a different direction, which is always welcome in 24.
9. Henry Taylor. Henry was really involved in the "Roger didn't commit suicide" story, which got a bit boring after a time. The character does have potential, but right now he is sitting in a hospital bed and hasn't been seen for a while.
10. Ethan Kanin. Ethan was introduced in season 6 as a very minor role, but has been prominent in this season and Redemption. To be honest, I don't like his character, it's the least favourite of the new ones introduced this season. I suppose this is because he is just so straightforward, not quirky but just business-like and predictable.
11. Chloe O'Brian. Chloe returns for this season following the shock revelation in the season 6 finale that she was pregnant. This has hardly been mentioned at all and I think they could play this up more. Apart from that her character has faced off against Janis Gold this season, which makes for an interesting story that hasn't been told before. She's still involved with all the usual stuff though, like hacking, breaking rules for Jack.....
12. Morris O'Brian. Morris is one of my favourite characters in 24. He is awesome in season 6, and I'm glad to see him appear briefly here. Surely Carlo Rota will not be satisfied with such a short appearance though? I hope to see him back shortly...perhaps assisting Chloe in one of her operations. I'm not sure to what extent his involvement was in Bill's rogue operation but this would also be interesting to find out.
13. Aaron Pierce. Aaron appears in every season of 24, and currently is stuck within the White House; he has been shot in a similar way to how he was shot in season 5. He seems to have a wider role this season than before; some seasons he only appears in one or two episodes but he is a bit recurring here. In general I think Aaron is a bit of a cult-favourite character who doesn't have much actual substance to him, but has just stuck around due to his fanbase.
14. Iké Dubaku. Dubaku's recent death was a shame; he was a really great villain, both in his ruthlessness and character development. I don't think 24 has any villain to replace him for such dramatic effect.
15. Benjamin Juma. Juma's only started to appear recently. I don't think he is believable as the leader of such a cold-blooded revolution; he is far too laid back. He doesn't come across as such an evil villain as Dubaku.
16. Jonas Hodges. Hodges appeared in episode 12 for the first time since "Redemption". He talks of a shipment and it is quite likely that he will return as a villain. So far though we don't know much about him, except that he was financing some of Juma's operations during Redemption, and sanctioned Roger Taylor's death.
17. Tom Lennox. Tom only appeared during "Redemption" and it's unlikely he'll appear again. He is seen defending President Daniels in a still unexplained matter.
18. Noah Daniels. Noah also only appeared during Redemption. I think it would be interesting to see some explanation behind the strangeness in his scenes, but he is not a good enough character to bring back long term (in the way that Palmer asssisted Logan in season 4, for example).
Likely to appear
1. Karen Hayes. Karen is Bill's wife, and Bill is a key character, so I hope she comes back in.
2. Nadia Yassir. Marisol Nichols was a very important actor in season 6, so I think the time is right for bringing her back.
3. Audrey Raines. I hope that Jack hasn't forgotten about Audrey; hopefully he will realise his true feelings for her before things get out of control with Renee.
4. James Heller. If Audrey returns then so will James, we hope.
5. Martha Logan. Martha and Aaron are a couple, so hopefully this will be a ticket for Jean Smart to return.
Possible to appear
1. Kim Bauer. Kim is due for a return as she's never missed two consecutive seasons before. I hope she doesn't bring that awful boyfriend psychiatrist of hers though, and is a bit more forgiving towards Jack.
2. Mike Novick. Mike has served under different presidents and is a really great character. He left season 5 on a good note and I hope he returns.
3. Wayne Palmer. Wayne's status is still unknown, hopefully he will come back to give a conclusion to this season 6 storyline.
4. Chase Edmunds. Chase was a huge season 3 character but hasn't been seen since the season 3 finale (except in 24: The Game). It would be interesting to add him back into the mix.
5. Charles Logan. Charles's appearance in season 6 was shocking; this one won't be quiite so shocking but Tony has clear anger towards Logan so it would be good to face them off.
Unlikely to appear
1. Sarah Gavin. Sarah was a season 4 character who was fired by Michelle Dessler. She worked quite well and it's a bit odd that she disappeared without return. However there isn't really a way for her to be worked back into the story with dramatic effect; most fans have probably forgotten her.
2. Lynne Kresge. She worked for the Palmer-Prescott administration, and once again disappeared very suddenly. It would be nice to see her again but with Palmer's death, there's not really a way in.
3. Adam Kaufman. Adam was a CTU analyst who appeared in all but one of the season 3 episodes. His sister died and he is likely grieving for her.
4. Kate Warner. Kate's story came to an end in the season 3 premiere but she is still alive. There's not a way to bring her back, except I suppose if they want to give Jack a reason not to go with Renee.
5. Erin Driscoll. Erin's daughter died during season 4, and she is very unlikely to be in any fit state to return ever.
6. Sandra Palmer. Sandra was a credited cast member during season 6, but only appeared in a handful of episodes; it's unclear why. She is still alive but didn't have any particularly strong storylines to her name as of the end of season 6.
Dead (very unlikely to appear)
1. Rick Allen. Rick was a major character in season 1 but died. Since his storyline only affects season 1, it is pretty much impossible he would come back.
2. Teri Bauer. Jack losing his wife was the major source of his grief, so bringing her back would seem a bit false.
3. Nina Myers. Probably the most likely "dead" person to come back, as perhaps she had contacts at CTU who revived her, just like Tony. But she has been off the scene for so long that it's incredibly unlikely.
4. David Palmer. While I'd love to see Dave around again, the amount of scrutiny that would have gone into the death of a president is such that his death would have been hard to fake.
5. George Mason. In fact the survival of George Mason was put out as an April Fool's joke by the scriptwriters. It's very unlikely as he was so close to the epicenter of a nuclear blast.
6. Sherry Palmer. Again this one is possible...but who would want to revive Sherry Palmer?
7. Michelle Dessler. She died right in front of Tony's eyes, and he hadn't even been recruited then by Emerson, so not likely her body could have been moved.
8. Curtis Manning. His character's storyline has come to an end and not much to add.
9. Edgar Stiles. Everyone saw Edgar die, and again the character storyline doesn't have much to add.
10. Milo Pressman. A possibilty, but he doesn't really have the stomach to be a double-agent.
Storylines
1. Juma regime. This storyline is shaping up quite well with the invasion of the White House, a completely unexpected move. Ike Dubaku was a great villain earlier this season.
2. War on Sangala. Linked to the above, this storyline has calmed down recently. The President had to make some tough calls, and it was good to establish her character.
3. The mole within the FBI. This has now been discovered as Sean, but I can't believe that that's it for Sean within this season.
4. Investigations into Roger's death. Certainly the reintroduction of Hodges, who seemed to sanction Roger's death, may well bring this storyline back.
5. The trial of Jack Bauer. The fact that Jack is now effectively locked up with the Senator will make for some interesting turns.
6. The Bauer-Walker-Moss love triangle. I think this storyline can get a bit ridiculous; Renee has only known Jack for 12 hours and already she seems to be in love with him.
Locations
1. The White House. The set is well constructed and has a bit more style than the one used on The West Wing; more time is spent there too. However due to continuity, they weren't able to customise this one too much.
2. FBI Washington Field Office. I've moaned about this set before. It's a bit of a stupid set as it is so closed and appears incredibly small, so we can't get the big action sequences.
3. "Counter Terrorist Unit". This set has been under-used; I imagined a big operations panel with plasma screens on the wall and so on. The crew have only visited it twice; they didn't stay rogue for long.
4. Ritter Building. This was Dubaku's base during the first part of the season. Since it was dark, it was hard to tell what was going on, which was almost a bit of a cheat for the set designers.
5. US Capitol. The first Jack Bauer scene was set here; another faithful representation and it would be nice to see again.
People
Already appeared
1. Jack Bauer. Jack's ruthlessness has now become commonplace, and he doesn't seem quite so affected by his time in China. In fact his experiences in India and Sangala haven't changed him too much either, he is just the same old person. I don't see much character development going on with Jack this season, much as Renee tries to force it!
2. Renee Walker. It seems more and more that Renee is there this season to be Jack's latest love interest. She is a good agent who works well with Jack though and I like seeing her in action sequences. Her character seems very different to early on in the season; then, she was a cool, calm person who was phased by nothing; now, she is a bit scared and not sure where she stands. I suppose Jack has that effect on people.
3. Larry Moss. Larry is a strong leader, if a bit naive. His introduction to this season is similar to characters like Ryan Chappelle, only he seems good-hearted. The involvement in the Jack-Renee love triangle also adds some extra depth here.
4. Bill Buchanan. Bill was one of my favourite character, especially in season 6, but here he seems too old and a bit past it. His refusal to co-operate with Jack's methods is borne out of a desire to do the right thing, which surely is a bit naive on a day like this. Buchanan still has potential though.
5. Janis Gold. As I've said before, I love the actress anyway from her appearance in The West Wing. Janis is sometimes quirky, sometimes funny, sometimes very straight-up and business-like; she has a lot of different sides and is a well-constructed character. Not to mention that she is hot!
6. Tony Almeida. Tony has had a similar assistance role this season to what he did in season 4. Seeing him back on operations is good; he hasn't featured recently though. The writers could do more with the "shock Tony returns" storyline moving into the second half of the season.
7. Sean Hillinger. Sean was a boring character to start with but the revelation that he is the mole is interesting. As previously stated, I hope he returns for a redemption storyline.
8. Allison Taylor. Taylor is a very morally upright individual, who has a different approach and aura than any other President we've seen on this show. I wouldn't say she is as good as Palmer or Logan, but she does take things in a different direction, which is always welcome in 24.
9. Henry Taylor. Henry was really involved in the "Roger didn't commit suicide" story, which got a bit boring after a time. The character does have potential, but right now he is sitting in a hospital bed and hasn't been seen for a while.
10. Ethan Kanin. Ethan was introduced in season 6 as a very minor role, but has been prominent in this season and Redemption. To be honest, I don't like his character, it's the least favourite of the new ones introduced this season. I suppose this is because he is just so straightforward, not quirky but just business-like and predictable.
11. Chloe O'Brian. Chloe returns for this season following the shock revelation in the season 6 finale that she was pregnant. This has hardly been mentioned at all and I think they could play this up more. Apart from that her character has faced off against Janis Gold this season, which makes for an interesting story that hasn't been told before. She's still involved with all the usual stuff though, like hacking, breaking rules for Jack.....
12. Morris O'Brian. Morris is one of my favourite characters in 24. He is awesome in season 6, and I'm glad to see him appear briefly here. Surely Carlo Rota will not be satisfied with such a short appearance though? I hope to see him back shortly...perhaps assisting Chloe in one of her operations. I'm not sure to what extent his involvement was in Bill's rogue operation but this would also be interesting to find out.
13. Aaron Pierce. Aaron appears in every season of 24, and currently is stuck within the White House; he has been shot in a similar way to how he was shot in season 5. He seems to have a wider role this season than before; some seasons he only appears in one or two episodes but he is a bit recurring here. In general I think Aaron is a bit of a cult-favourite character who doesn't have much actual substance to him, but has just stuck around due to his fanbase.
14. Iké Dubaku. Dubaku's recent death was a shame; he was a really great villain, both in his ruthlessness and character development. I don't think 24 has any villain to replace him for such dramatic effect.
15. Benjamin Juma. Juma's only started to appear recently. I don't think he is believable as the leader of such a cold-blooded revolution; he is far too laid back. He doesn't come across as such an evil villain as Dubaku.
16. Jonas Hodges. Hodges appeared in episode 12 for the first time since "Redemption". He talks of a shipment and it is quite likely that he will return as a villain. So far though we don't know much about him, except that he was financing some of Juma's operations during Redemption, and sanctioned Roger Taylor's death.
17. Tom Lennox. Tom only appeared during "Redemption" and it's unlikely he'll appear again. He is seen defending President Daniels in a still unexplained matter.
18. Noah Daniels. Noah also only appeared during Redemption. I think it would be interesting to see some explanation behind the strangeness in his scenes, but he is not a good enough character to bring back long term (in the way that Palmer asssisted Logan in season 4, for example).
Likely to appear
1. Karen Hayes. Karen is Bill's wife, and Bill is a key character, so I hope she comes back in.
2. Nadia Yassir. Marisol Nichols was a very important actor in season 6, so I think the time is right for bringing her back.
3. Audrey Raines. I hope that Jack hasn't forgotten about Audrey; hopefully he will realise his true feelings for her before things get out of control with Renee.
4. James Heller. If Audrey returns then so will James, we hope.
5. Martha Logan. Martha and Aaron are a couple, so hopefully this will be a ticket for Jean Smart to return.
Possible to appear
1. Kim Bauer. Kim is due for a return as she's never missed two consecutive seasons before. I hope she doesn't bring that awful boyfriend psychiatrist of hers though, and is a bit more forgiving towards Jack.
2. Mike Novick. Mike has served under different presidents and is a really great character. He left season 5 on a good note and I hope he returns.
3. Wayne Palmer. Wayne's status is still unknown, hopefully he will come back to give a conclusion to this season 6 storyline.
4. Chase Edmunds. Chase was a huge season 3 character but hasn't been seen since the season 3 finale (except in 24: The Game). It would be interesting to add him back into the mix.
5. Charles Logan. Charles's appearance in season 6 was shocking; this one won't be quiite so shocking but Tony has clear anger towards Logan so it would be good to face them off.
Unlikely to appear
1. Sarah Gavin. Sarah was a season 4 character who was fired by Michelle Dessler. She worked quite well and it's a bit odd that she disappeared without return. However there isn't really a way for her to be worked back into the story with dramatic effect; most fans have probably forgotten her.
2. Lynne Kresge. She worked for the Palmer-Prescott administration, and once again disappeared very suddenly. It would be nice to see her again but with Palmer's death, there's not really a way in.
3. Adam Kaufman. Adam was a CTU analyst who appeared in all but one of the season 3 episodes. His sister died and he is likely grieving for her.
4. Kate Warner. Kate's story came to an end in the season 3 premiere but she is still alive. There's not a way to bring her back, except I suppose if they want to give Jack a reason not to go with Renee.
5. Erin Driscoll. Erin's daughter died during season 4, and she is very unlikely to be in any fit state to return ever.
6. Sandra Palmer. Sandra was a credited cast member during season 6, but only appeared in a handful of episodes; it's unclear why. She is still alive but didn't have any particularly strong storylines to her name as of the end of season 6.
Dead (very unlikely to appear)
1. Rick Allen. Rick was a major character in season 1 but died. Since his storyline only affects season 1, it is pretty much impossible he would come back.
2. Teri Bauer. Jack losing his wife was the major source of his grief, so bringing her back would seem a bit false.
3. Nina Myers. Probably the most likely "dead" person to come back, as perhaps she had contacts at CTU who revived her, just like Tony. But she has been off the scene for so long that it's incredibly unlikely.
4. David Palmer. While I'd love to see Dave around again, the amount of scrutiny that would have gone into the death of a president is such that his death would have been hard to fake.
5. George Mason. In fact the survival of George Mason was put out as an April Fool's joke by the scriptwriters. It's very unlikely as he was so close to the epicenter of a nuclear blast.
6. Sherry Palmer. Again this one is possible...but who would want to revive Sherry Palmer?
7. Michelle Dessler. She died right in front of Tony's eyes, and he hadn't even been recruited then by Emerson, so not likely her body could have been moved.
8. Curtis Manning. His character's storyline has come to an end and not much to add.
9. Edgar Stiles. Everyone saw Edgar die, and again the character storyline doesn't have much to add.
10. Milo Pressman. A possibilty, but he doesn't really have the stomach to be a double-agent.
[DMG] You Got Your Prom Date Pregnant
TV Programme: Damages
Season: 2
Episode: 9
Date I watched this episode: 07/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 8 days.
It's hard to believe that there's only 4 episodes left this season. Especially with 24 only just past the half-way point, this season doesn't seem to be progressing fast enough to be able to finish in just a very short space of time. The only thing that could redeem this season is if the creators can really pull something out of the bag to connect everything together in a supremely clever way.
Of course, it may well be that this entire season is just a setup season for the next one, which is already confirmed. This is a dangerous strategy from a business point of view though - as they may well lose their entire fanbase before they get a chance to get to the good stuff.
Meanwhile, they get some channel-hoppers engaged with their episode-long storylines. For example, here we have the return of Sam Arsenault. What is the point of this? Arsenault (who is now sporting a full beard) seemed like a great prospect at the start of the season. But now he comes in to fulfil a fairly minor story role, sings a few songs and gets rejected as energy secretary. Even the charity venture (which has been all but forgotten now) only got an in-passing mention here. This venture was Patty's redemption, and she seems to have forgotten all about it.
Patty's redemption now seems to be in the case against Ultima National Resources. Patty is saying to Phil at one point in this episode that she can't let UNR get away with it. Her quirky morals add depth to her character...she tried to kill Ellen and now she is something of a freedom fighter!
I still don't know who killed Uncle Pete. Like I said last time, Patty did receive a call as the murderer was leaving the hospital, but there is also a lot of evidence to suggest that the guy who killed him was working alone (he had a lot to lose if Pete talked) or had been instructed by Pete himself.
Wes's strategy to get Ellen was pretty well thought-out. I could learn something from this guy!! Only kidding... Well anyway I think he is really starting to fall for her, and I think it's very unlikely he'll even get close to killing her on Rick Messer's orders. It's interesting the recurring themes - the scene at the firing range is pretty repetitive and I've only just noticed that this week. The firing range itself is probably a pretty cheap set to shoot on...
Interesting to put Lani/Suzy and Patty in a room together. The female touch can really make a difference!! Interesting that Patty actually went through with helping her; sometimes she promises protection and the like but doesn't deliver. Well this might be the last we see of Lani, but she is a good character.
Tom's sister on the other hand is a fairly bad character. I think she was a bit of a bad actor in this episode; she just read her lines without giving any real weight to the character. With so many great actors this season, this kinda stuck out like a sore thumb. (Though I regularly fault the scriptwriting, I can't fault the directing or the acting this season).
The fact that the FBI file doesn't exist - what on earth is that all about? Mr McGraff is reporting into someone different - or so we think from the phone call he made. The obvious person is Hollis Nye. Perhaps Mr Nye has a different agenda. We know he is involved with the investigation somehow already, from his presence in season 1. I think there is some real scope here for a dramatic transformation in what we believe to be true.
The Shayes involvement got more interesting in this episode. Tom is clearly going to get fired for some reason, but this is no reason to get involved with killing his old boss. I think we're going to see more of this to come before we get the real answers. Also to come - Phil Hewes as the energy secretary? Doesn't quite work for me; Phil himself said that he has no knowledge of the energy market, nor any political experience. Surely he must know that he'll be a mere pawn, and that is no position for someone of his stature to be in for 2 years. So I'm not sure what's going on with his character or in his head here.
The title of this episode was spoken by Tom's sister to Tom himself. It was taken a bit out of context; Tom only though that he had got his prom date pregnant. I was wrong again...next week's is called "Uh oh. Out come the skeletons." Let's see... sounds like an Ellen thing to say, perhaps about Patty but not to her. I think she is more likely to be talking to the FBI agents.
I don't have much more to say except that the pace is still totally wrong, and I am not sure how they are going to wrap this up in only 4 episodes.
Season: 2
Episode: 9
Date I watched this episode: 07/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 8 days.
It's hard to believe that there's only 4 episodes left this season. Especially with 24 only just past the half-way point, this season doesn't seem to be progressing fast enough to be able to finish in just a very short space of time. The only thing that could redeem this season is if the creators can really pull something out of the bag to connect everything together in a supremely clever way.
Of course, it may well be that this entire season is just a setup season for the next one, which is already confirmed. This is a dangerous strategy from a business point of view though - as they may well lose their entire fanbase before they get a chance to get to the good stuff.
Meanwhile, they get some channel-hoppers engaged with their episode-long storylines. For example, here we have the return of Sam Arsenault. What is the point of this? Arsenault (who is now sporting a full beard) seemed like a great prospect at the start of the season. But now he comes in to fulfil a fairly minor story role, sings a few songs and gets rejected as energy secretary. Even the charity venture (which has been all but forgotten now) only got an in-passing mention here. This venture was Patty's redemption, and she seems to have forgotten all about it.
Patty's redemption now seems to be in the case against Ultima National Resources. Patty is saying to Phil at one point in this episode that she can't let UNR get away with it. Her quirky morals add depth to her character...she tried to kill Ellen and now she is something of a freedom fighter!
I still don't know who killed Uncle Pete. Like I said last time, Patty did receive a call as the murderer was leaving the hospital, but there is also a lot of evidence to suggest that the guy who killed him was working alone (he had a lot to lose if Pete talked) or had been instructed by Pete himself.
Wes's strategy to get Ellen was pretty well thought-out. I could learn something from this guy!! Only kidding... Well anyway I think he is really starting to fall for her, and I think it's very unlikely he'll even get close to killing her on Rick Messer's orders. It's interesting the recurring themes - the scene at the firing range is pretty repetitive and I've only just noticed that this week. The firing range itself is probably a pretty cheap set to shoot on...
Interesting to put Lani/Suzy and Patty in a room together. The female touch can really make a difference!! Interesting that Patty actually went through with helping her; sometimes she promises protection and the like but doesn't deliver. Well this might be the last we see of Lani, but she is a good character.
Tom's sister on the other hand is a fairly bad character. I think she was a bit of a bad actor in this episode; she just read her lines without giving any real weight to the character. With so many great actors this season, this kinda stuck out like a sore thumb. (Though I regularly fault the scriptwriting, I can't fault the directing or the acting this season).
The fact that the FBI file doesn't exist - what on earth is that all about? Mr McGraff is reporting into someone different - or so we think from the phone call he made. The obvious person is Hollis Nye. Perhaps Mr Nye has a different agenda. We know he is involved with the investigation somehow already, from his presence in season 1. I think there is some real scope here for a dramatic transformation in what we believe to be true.
The Shayes involvement got more interesting in this episode. Tom is clearly going to get fired for some reason, but this is no reason to get involved with killing his old boss. I think we're going to see more of this to come before we get the real answers. Also to come - Phil Hewes as the energy secretary? Doesn't quite work for me; Phil himself said that he has no knowledge of the energy market, nor any political experience. Surely he must know that he'll be a mere pawn, and that is no position for someone of his stature to be in for 2 years. So I'm not sure what's going on with his character or in his head here.
The title of this episode was spoken by Tom's sister to Tom himself. It was taken a bit out of context; Tom only though that he had got his prom date pregnant. I was wrong again...next week's is called "Uh oh. Out come the skeletons." Let's see... sounds like an Ellen thing to say, perhaps about Patty but not to her. I think she is more likely to be talking to the FBI agents.
I don't have much more to say except that the pace is still totally wrong, and I am not sure how they are going to wrap this up in only 4 episodes.
Sunday, 8 March 2009
[24H] Day 7: 7:00pm-8:00pm
TV Programme: 24
Season: 7
Episode: 12
Date I watched this episode: 05/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 2 days.
Almost every season we have an episode like this one - effectively a long action sequence packaged as one episode. It certainly reminds me of the midpoint in season 1, where Ira Gaines' base was under attack by Jack and the other agents. Usually there has been a big buildup, but here they took a different strategy by making an entire episode of setup (the last one) and then starting off the action in this one.
Juma's strategy was fleshed out in this episode and seemed a bit more believable than it had seemed in episode 11. The presence of inside help was vital to making this attack believable. I think Juma, like Dubaku before him, comes off as a great tactician. He has this day well planned for any eventuality, and can calmly progress through it without incident. In particular, he managed to get the entire opposing force to leave the building so he could take it for himself - this is quite a feat!
The initial start of the gunfight sequence was good - and reminded me of [TWW] "In The Shadow Of Two Gunmen" where the vice president was escorted out of the White House by secret service agents. It was like an explosion where you have an initial seed and then things spiral out of control exponentially. At first the president was sitting in her chair reading some documents, then suddenly running to the lockdown, there was a gun battle, quick decisions...it makes for a very thrilling experience.
Bill's escape with the president's tracker was quite suspenseful. I think Bill's story arc across the entire programme is coming to an end, and there is quite a chance he could die this season. The very quiet music made this seem even more real. However on reflection, I think that Bill's character has more to give yet, as evidenced by the scene where Jack tries to convince Bill to torture Burnett. This may well make for a "rules versus results" storyline between Bill and Jack, two old friends, which could get quite ugly (and has already been hinted at in the scene where Jack tries to convince Bill to give up Burnett's location).
The Vice President doesn't seem as strong a character as some VPs we've had in the past (Logan, Gardner, Daniels). He is clearly politically motivated, but nevertheless seemed to handle himself quite well in the scene this episode. His politics are bound to get in the way of a resolution, as is the case with most seasons.
The president herself was developed to some extent in this episode. She is no longer in the safety of the Oval Office, and shows a more strong and resilient side to her character than ever before. Her working with Jack to turn off the unlocking mechanism, her being slapped by Juma - she is showing a side we don't usually expect to see from a President.
I think Jack's presence was played down somewhat in this episode which is not a bad thing - the surrounding story was focussed on more. However Larry clearly realises that Renee has feelings for Bauer even if Renee doesn't realise it herself - this is why he reiterates that the President is their goal here in this episode.
It's good to see Jonas Hodges back, his first appearance since Redemption. Since he is collecting a shipment which is 2 hours away, I feel it is quite likely that the Juma storyline will be wrapped up by then, and Hodges will become the "third villain" of the season. In the next episode it will be interesting to see what happens - and hopefully Senator Mayer will get his comeuppance; he is completely out of line to blame Jack for what has happened towards the end of this episode.
I think this episode was a satisfying climax to the last one. As I've mentioned before, the White House as a target makes for a very gripping storyline, and this was well dealt with in this action-packed episode. It's all too easy to mess up action-heavy episodes, but 24 showed that it still has what it takes to keep us interested.
Season: 7
Episode: 12
Date I watched this episode: 05/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 2 days.
Almost every season we have an episode like this one - effectively a long action sequence packaged as one episode. It certainly reminds me of the midpoint in season 1, where Ira Gaines' base was under attack by Jack and the other agents. Usually there has been a big buildup, but here they took a different strategy by making an entire episode of setup (the last one) and then starting off the action in this one.
Juma's strategy was fleshed out in this episode and seemed a bit more believable than it had seemed in episode 11. The presence of inside help was vital to making this attack believable. I think Juma, like Dubaku before him, comes off as a great tactician. He has this day well planned for any eventuality, and can calmly progress through it without incident. In particular, he managed to get the entire opposing force to leave the building so he could take it for himself - this is quite a feat!
The initial start of the gunfight sequence was good - and reminded me of [TWW] "In The Shadow Of Two Gunmen" where the vice president was escorted out of the White House by secret service agents. It was like an explosion where you have an initial seed and then things spiral out of control exponentially. At first the president was sitting in her chair reading some documents, then suddenly running to the lockdown, there was a gun battle, quick decisions...it makes for a very thrilling experience.
Bill's escape with the president's tracker was quite suspenseful. I think Bill's story arc across the entire programme is coming to an end, and there is quite a chance he could die this season. The very quiet music made this seem even more real. However on reflection, I think that Bill's character has more to give yet, as evidenced by the scene where Jack tries to convince Bill to torture Burnett. This may well make for a "rules versus results" storyline between Bill and Jack, two old friends, which could get quite ugly (and has already been hinted at in the scene where Jack tries to convince Bill to give up Burnett's location).
The Vice President doesn't seem as strong a character as some VPs we've had in the past (Logan, Gardner, Daniels). He is clearly politically motivated, but nevertheless seemed to handle himself quite well in the scene this episode. His politics are bound to get in the way of a resolution, as is the case with most seasons.
The president herself was developed to some extent in this episode. She is no longer in the safety of the Oval Office, and shows a more strong and resilient side to her character than ever before. Her working with Jack to turn off the unlocking mechanism, her being slapped by Juma - she is showing a side we don't usually expect to see from a President.
I think Jack's presence was played down somewhat in this episode which is not a bad thing - the surrounding story was focussed on more. However Larry clearly realises that Renee has feelings for Bauer even if Renee doesn't realise it herself - this is why he reiterates that the President is their goal here in this episode.
It's good to see Jonas Hodges back, his first appearance since Redemption. Since he is collecting a shipment which is 2 hours away, I feel it is quite likely that the Juma storyline will be wrapped up by then, and Hodges will become the "third villain" of the season. In the next episode it will be interesting to see what happens - and hopefully Senator Mayer will get his comeuppance; he is completely out of line to blame Jack for what has happened towards the end of this episode.
I think this episode was a satisfying climax to the last one. As I've mentioned before, the White House as a target makes for a very gripping storyline, and this was well dealt with in this action-packed episode. It's all too easy to mess up action-heavy episodes, but 24 showed that it still has what it takes to keep us interested.
Wednesday, 4 March 2009
[24H] Day 7: 6:00pm - 7:00pm
TV Programme: 24
Season: 7
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 03/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 7 days.
It's unclear to me why the folks at 24 decided to make this 24 a double-bill, but there you go: two episodes were shown on the same night. At the time of writing this I haven't watched episode 12 yet, but I have that to look forward to. Anyway surprise, surprise: Juma is in Washington. Everyone is in Washington now: Bill, Chloe and Morris, Jack, Dubaku, Juma... Not really a shock anymore when you find out someone is in DC, and it's getting a bit ridiculous.
This episode had the "rules versus results" theme strongly embedded. Senator Mayer is basically the embodiment of this dilemma. He is a good character, and I liked the little debate between Mayer and President Taylor; I'm sure it reflects the dialogue going on her own head right now. She is swaying back towards the torture option though... It is interesting to see the president involved at this level; usually past presidents such as David Palmer have been shielded from the actual decisions of torture. Ethan's character was not strong in this episode; he merely provided a sounding board, which is less than what I expect from a credited cast member.
The idea of an attack on the White House, and Jack's interrogation within the White House itself, was a brave move but also rings of the epic things 24 used to do. (And much more controversial things have been done on television in the past, for example the Nazi White House in [ENT] "Zero Hour"). I think however it is a bit ridiculous to suggest that the White House can be infiltrated by swimming through a drain; this kind of thing will have been gone over a million times.
I liked the way Chloe and Janis played off each other in this episode, and we got another almost catfight here. Janis is quite jealous of Chloe, and I think Chloe is quite impressed by Janis, but they have to get past this initial phase before they can really start working together.
I didn't think Bill really acted in-character in this episode. He knows from past experience how fast results can demand desperate measures, and his refusal to co-operate in this episode, even chastising Tony, seemed out of place. He must also know that you can't talk Jack Bauer out of something like this, especially not when so many lives are at stake?!
Renee was being very obvious on her little infiltration mission this week. Her supposed stealth tactics (talking at a whisper rather than full voice, and hiding some of her face behind some blinds) were laughable, and I'm sure any real field agent wouldn't have taken such a big risk for basically no extra gain.
Unfortunately it does look like they may pursue some sort of 25th amendment style story here; led by Senator Mayer who thinks Taylor's judgment is impaired. This would be a shame as it has been done so many times before as to suck all the freshness out of the sequence.
I'd like to know what Tony's source was for the intel. He seemed to pause for rather too long when he said that the source was dead. Who is he protecting? Perhaps he has some skeletons that he doesn't want to air just yet. Maybe Tony himself directly worked for Juma at some point?!
I think in general the moral dilemmas added more to this episode than the action sequences. I will reserve final judgment on this episode though until I have seen the next one.
Season: 7
Episode: 11
Date I watched this episode: 03/03/2009
Time since I last watched this programme: 7 days.
It's unclear to me why the folks at 24 decided to make this 24 a double-bill, but there you go: two episodes were shown on the same night. At the time of writing this I haven't watched episode 12 yet, but I have that to look forward to. Anyway surprise, surprise: Juma is in Washington. Everyone is in Washington now: Bill, Chloe and Morris, Jack, Dubaku, Juma... Not really a shock anymore when you find out someone is in DC, and it's getting a bit ridiculous.
This episode had the "rules versus results" theme strongly embedded. Senator Mayer is basically the embodiment of this dilemma. He is a good character, and I liked the little debate between Mayer and President Taylor; I'm sure it reflects the dialogue going on her own head right now. She is swaying back towards the torture option though... It is interesting to see the president involved at this level; usually past presidents such as David Palmer have been shielded from the actual decisions of torture. Ethan's character was not strong in this episode; he merely provided a sounding board, which is less than what I expect from a credited cast member.
The idea of an attack on the White House, and Jack's interrogation within the White House itself, was a brave move but also rings of the epic things 24 used to do. (And much more controversial things have been done on television in the past, for example the Nazi White House in [ENT] "Zero Hour"). I think however it is a bit ridiculous to suggest that the White House can be infiltrated by swimming through a drain; this kind of thing will have been gone over a million times.
I liked the way Chloe and Janis played off each other in this episode, and we got another almost catfight here. Janis is quite jealous of Chloe, and I think Chloe is quite impressed by Janis, but they have to get past this initial phase before they can really start working together.
I didn't think Bill really acted in-character in this episode. He knows from past experience how fast results can demand desperate measures, and his refusal to co-operate in this episode, even chastising Tony, seemed out of place. He must also know that you can't talk Jack Bauer out of something like this, especially not when so many lives are at stake?!
Renee was being very obvious on her little infiltration mission this week. Her supposed stealth tactics (talking at a whisper rather than full voice, and hiding some of her face behind some blinds) were laughable, and I'm sure any real field agent wouldn't have taken such a big risk for basically no extra gain.
Unfortunately it does look like they may pursue some sort of 25th amendment style story here; led by Senator Mayer who thinks Taylor's judgment is impaired. This would be a shame as it has been done so many times before as to suck all the freshness out of the sequence.
I'd like to know what Tony's source was for the intel. He seemed to pause for rather too long when he said that the source was dead. Who is he protecting? Perhaps he has some skeletons that he doesn't want to air just yet. Maybe Tony himself directly worked for Juma at some point?!
I think in general the moral dilemmas added more to this episode than the action sequences. I will reserve final judgment on this episode though until I have seen the next one.
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