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Reviews
The Orville: Twice in a Lifetime (2022)
Oh My
Infuriating, heartbreaking, and exceptional. I will always be mad and captivated at the same time.
-1 star for the temporal paradox that goes unresolved.
Blue Bloods: The Truth About Lying (2013)
And I'll Tell You Why
I gave this episode a 1 because the solution to Jenko's problem-to have the (conveniently just arrived on the scene) Inspector General engage in a live fire exercise-is so overtly easy (trite) as to be an insult to the viewer. Some might think 1 star for that unfair, but one of the things I respect about this show is how intelligent it is, so to dumb it down like that is kind of offensive, and I don't get offended easily, not by TV shows, at least.
The Orville: A Tale of Two Topas (2022)
Excellence
There really are no words for how amazing this episode is. It's genius, it's raw and well-acted, and it represents the absolute best of our humanity (even if the focus of the story is a non-human, lol).
Man with a Plan: The Party Planner (2018)
Terrible
This episode is pretty heinous, honestly. Adam actually comes through on his wife's birthday, but then his sister-in-law, then his wife's friend, and then his wife herself all make him miserable and punish him for their own neurotic hang ups. It's a really disappointing story and an even worse representation of women.
Star Trek: Strange New Worlds: The Elysian Kingdom (2022)
Works On Every Level
Storytelling at its best. It just works on every level. Babs Olusanmokun is brilliant and raw. Anson Mount and Christina Chong are impeccable at comedic acting. And the Emmy for Best Costuming goes to whoever kitted out the actors in this episode. Don't let the haters (The episode appears to have a pretty low rating compared to previous ones.) distract you from a masterful combination of science fiction, fantasy, and a classic tale of a father's love for his daughter. Best episode so far, hands down.
Blue Bloods: Black and Blue (2011)
Well Done
So, it's a bit heavy-handed, and it lacks enough nuance to be aired today, a mere decade after it first aired. For all that, I think it's a pretty powerful testament about race, demagoguery, and policing.
Star Trek: Picard: Monsters (2022)
Sooooo Disappointing
Every Star Trek series has an episode that wins the "Spock's Brain Award" for worst episode of the entire series. Overall, I'm loving Star Trek: Picard, but this episode just won the worst award in Trekdom.
Abbott Elementary: Zoo Balloon (2022)
Exactly What I Needed
I've loved this show from the first episode, but this episode will always be special to me. I lost my mom four days ago, and one of the things I've been doing to make it through is rewatch episodes of this show. This episode is the first to air since my mom's passing, and the messages of strength, determination, and change in this episode hit really close. Like Janine says, "I'm going to be ok."
Gamgi (2013)
Let me say one thing:
A really good film, but I had to subtract two stars bc there are so many people acting like idiots who, in a real emergency, would have had their tails beat. (I don't advocate violence in real life, but, seriously, in this film, there are several characters who should have been knocked up side the head.) Very aggravating.
The Lost City (2022)
A Hidden Gem
Yes, this movie falls victim to some of the tropes of the standard rom-com, but it doesn't matter because the entire subtext of the film is making fun of those tropes. What's more, it's funny as heck, and Bullock and Tatum have real chemistry. The scene where they dance together was, in a way, more erotic than any dance Tatum did in "Magic Mike!"
Moonfall (2022)
Really Good, but one little problem....
A really awesome movie with the possibility of becoming a science fiction classic. Having said that, the family dynamic is forced and works with 2-dimensional characters. Just focus on the sci-fi, and you'll have a hell of a time!
Halloween Kills (2021)
Why Are We Like This?
I'm honestly disappointed in myself for not turning the movie off before I even got to the end. Why do we, as a society, like this violent trash? Why do we like seeing innocent people, just going about their business, brutally murdered?
American Dad!: Dancin' A-With My Cell (2021)
A Rare But Terrible Miss
I think the tagline above says it all. I love this show, and I'll keep watching, but this was a pretty atrocious episode, both A- and B- stories. And Brian Lewis was wasted in this episode.
Reservation Dogs: Come and Get Your Love (2021)
Let Me Explain the 9
I've given every episode of this show 10 out of 10, because it's incandescent. Just a brilliant, beautiful show. But I had some issues with this episode because it brings in magical surrealism/elements of folklore into the story without explaining its relevance. It seems slightly pandering, but I respect anyone who disagrees with that assessment.
Malcolm in the Middle: Family Reunion (2002)
No One Messes with Mom
When the boys realize what the family did to hurt their mom, they all get this similar look on their faces, and they go to war. It's probably ten of the best seconds ever featured on television.
Reminiscence (2021)
"Total Recall" Meets Film Noir
This is not a perfect movie, in that it's somewhat derivative of "Total Recall" and "Inception," but, for all that, it still warrants ten stars. It's visually stunning, very well-acted, and, because of the film noir element added to the science fiction components of it, it still manages to be something new and unique, regardless of the fact that we've these elements before.
In the Heat of the Night: The Creek (1989)
Cue Eyeroll
Carroll O'Connor is the only thing this episode has going for it.
Stargate SG-1: The Warrior (2002)
O'Neil Really Needs to Climb Down
I've spent four and a half seasons waiting for O'Neil's ethnocentrism to bite him in the backside. If I were on SG-1, I'd have reported him to General Hammond ages ago.
In the Heat of the Night: A Trip Upstate (1989)
Breathtakingly Good
This is storytelling by at its most exceptional. This is a story told as much by its silences as by its sounds. A searing indictment of the banality-and thus, the evil-of capital punishment.
In the Heat of the Night: Tear Down the Walls (1989)
Outstanding Work
This is storytelling at its best. This is a story told as much by its silences as by its sounds. A seething indictment of the banality-and thus, the evil-of capital punishment.
In the Heat of the Night: Stranger in Town (1989)
Socially Reprehensible
I'm not sure where to begin here. First, the portrayal of Black characters in this episode is morally inexcusable: every Black woman in this episode is a prostitute, and a couple of them are awful mothers, as well. Thus, Black femininity is irrevocably linked to the "Jezebel" stereotype of the hyper sexual Black woman, and one who doesn't care about her kids, at that.
Secondly, the acting is just terrible, and not just from guest stars: Howard Rollins' performance in this episode is akin to listening to nails on a chalkboard. What is more, his character's obsession with "saving" just one of the prostitutes in the episode-despite there being an entire neighborhood devoted to the world's oldest profession-demeans and dehumanizes all of the other sex workers in the episode. Why, I want to know, are the irredeemable and unworthy of "salvation?" And why must these women be saved? I'm all for Rollins' character putting away the local pimp so he can no longer extort money from the women doing the actual work, but why must he spend the entire episode demeaning sex workers and the work they do?
The Green Knight (2021)
A Masterpiece
Visually stunning. Absolutely deserves the Oscars for Production Design, Cinematography, Sound Mixing, and Best Actor.
Morning Glory (2010)
Sweet But Lacking
It's a really sweet film overall, with some pretty humorous parts. But everything moves and happens too quickly. I never in my life thought I'd say this but the film needed more montages. They don't show us enough to convince us to believe that everyone is getting happier and is working together better than before. Plus, the antagonist changes his stripes way too easily.
Game Night (2018)
I Screamed Laughing
So silly, it actually manages to work on every level.
Awake (2021)
Just Bad
I couldn't even finish it. Just because I'm watching movies by myself on a Saturday night doesn't mean I have so little pride as to inflict this on myself.